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The document offers a framework for reporting on flooding, emphasizing the need to connect local events to the broader climate context, avoid misleading probabilistic language like '100-year flood', and focus on personal impacts and hyperlocal infrastructure. It provides a curated list of reporting examples from various US regions and links to data tools from agencies like NOAA and FEMA.

The guide advises journalists to contextualize floods within the broader framework of climate change, noting that a warmer atmosphere retains more moisture, leading to more frequent and intense extreme precipitation globally. It recommends avoiding probabilistic terms like "100-year flood" in favor of simple superlatives and suggests focusing on personal impacts and hyper-local infrastructure to make stories more relevant. The document also provides a curated list of mapping tools and data sources, such as NOAA, FEMA, and World Weather Attribution, to assist in reporting on flood risks and attribution.

Clean energy investment in the U.S. more than tripled between 2018 and 2023, reaching nearly $248 billion annually. Investment is concentrated in the South and West, with zero-emission vehicles, solar power, and wind power serving as the primary drivers of growth across different regions and states.

India's power grid is facing increased strain from record-breaking heatwaves and power demand, as seen in May 2024 when nationwide demand hit 250 GW. While battery energy storage systems (BESS) costs in India have dropped 65 percent over the last two years, investment is hindered by market rules that only recognize 'energy only' dispatch strategies. The document asserts that if regulators recognize a 'full value stack'—including resource adequacy, ancillary services, and transmission and distribution (T+D) deferral—BESS profit margins could range from 24 to 70 percent. To unlock this market, the document recommends that the Forum of Regulators provide valuation guidance, state regulators incorporate BESS into long-term resource adequacy planning, and the Central Electricity Authority (CERC) increase transparency and access to ancillary service markets.

The report argues that hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks (FCETs) are best suited for long-haul heavy-duty trucking due to superior payload capacity, range, and refueling speeds compared to battery electric trucks (BETs). However, adoption is currently stymied by a 'chicken-and-egg' infrastructure problem and high fuel costs, with public hydrogen in California costing approximately $25/kg compared to a diesel-competitive price of roughly $6.50/kg. While California is the primary driver of adoption due to regulations like the Advanced Clean Fleet and Advanced Clean Trucks rules, projections from the California Air Resources Board (CARB) suggest slow penetration unless significant interventions occur. The report recommends prioritizing the reduction of pump prices—even if it requires accepting higher carbon intensity in the short term—and streamlining infrastructure permitting to enable a transition away from diesel by 2030.

In October 2024, 185 of 191 analyzed U.S. cities were warmer than normal, with 19 cities recording their hottest October on record. The Southwest experienced particularly high anomalies, and cities in California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and Florida saw the highest frequency of days where temperatures were made at least three times more likely due to climate change.

The report identifies a significant 'charging access gap' for U.S. residents in multifamily housing (MFH), who often lack on-site charging and must rely on public infrastructure. Analyzing 69 cities, the study found that no city achieved a 'best in class' ranking, with many cities—particularly in the Upper Midwest and Texas—showing high ratios of MFH units per public charger. The authors argue that this lack of reliable charging is a critical barrier to equitable EV adoption, especially for lower-income and non-white drivers. To address this, the report recommends a combination of EV-ready building codes, right-to-charge laws, curbside charging expansions, and streamlined utility interconnection rules.

The report finds that the majority of Lloyd's managing agents lack formal policies to stop underwriting new fossil fuel projects, contradicting the market's net-zero goals. While some have restricted coal, very few have restricted oil and gas, and none have restricted LNG export terminals. The analysis identifies specific deals where Lloyd's syndicates provided coverage for major US coal mines, Arctic oil and gas assets, and US LNG terminals.

Analysis by Climate Central indicates that June-August 2024 was the hottest season on record, with carbon pollution significantly increasing the frequency and intensity of risky heat days globally and in the U.S. Approximately 2 billion people worldwide experienced 30 or more risky heat days made at least three times more likely by climate change. In the U.S., the average person experienced 20 additional risky heat days, with the highest impacts concentrated in the South, Southeast, and Southwest, particularly in Florida and Puerto Rico.

The document argues that the Advanced Clean Fleets (ACF) regulation is feasible due to extensive state and federal funding and the availability of fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) for long-haul and drayage trucking. It outlines the ACF's ZEV requirements for government, high-priority, and drayage fleets, and lists numerous financial incentives such as the HVIP and the Inflation Reduction Act. CATF emphasizes that FCEVs are critical for routes over 300 miles where battery electric vehicles (BEVs) are less efficient, and notes that California is actively building the necessary hydrogen refueling infrastructure.

The document advises journalists to move beyond describing fracking as 'controversial' and instead explain its specific climate and health impacts. It highlights that fracking accounts for nearly two-thirds of US oil production and argues that its methane emissions make it more damaging to the climate than coal. The guide also emphasizes the importance of reporting on state-level regulation and the need for a just transition for fossil-fuel-dependent communities.

The document details the decline of Steward Health Care, from its 2010 acquisition by Cerberus Capital Management to its May 2024 Chapter 11 bankruptcy. It highlights a pattern of 'asset stripping' and 'sale-leaseback' transactions with Medical Properties Trust (MPT) that allowed investors to extract hundreds of millions in dividends while the health system faced severe understaffing, equipment repossessions, and patient deaths. The author argues that an ineffective regulatory landscape enabled this 'pillaging,' leading to the closure of multiple hospitals across several US states and recommending strict new laws on hospital ownership, financial transparency, and dividend payouts.

The briefing links the increased frequency and intensity of US extreme weather events, such as the July 2023 heatwave and August 2024 California wildfires, to climate change driven by fossil fuels. It highlights that US oil and gas production emissions rose roughly 42% between 2011 and 2022 and notes that 88 large fossil fuel and cement companies are responsible for 48% of the rise in fire-danger conditions in the region. The document argues for corporate accountability, citing a Climate Analytics estimate that the 12 most polluting companies are responsible for USD 15 trillion in economic damages from 1985 to 2018. While the US has seen significant growth in solar and wind capacity and electric vehicle sales, primary energy consumption remains dominated by petroleum (38%), natural gas (36%), and coal (9%) as of 2023.

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has introduced 'Direct Pay' (or elective pay), allowing tax-exempt entities and certain third-party financial organizations to receive cash back—between 30% and 70%—on clean energy project costs. This enables a model where a third party, such as the nonprofit RE-volv, pays upfront costs and leases the system to a recipient at a monthly rate lower than previous electricity costs. A 12kW project at the Watts-Willowbrook Church of Christ in Compton, California, serves as an example, expecting to save over $180,000 in electricity costs over 20 years with no upfront payment. RMI's RISE Cohort is working to scale this model by providing technical assistance to local governments and financial institutions.

The document details how rising sea surface temperatures, driven by human-caused climate change, are increasing the frequency and intensity of rapid intensification in tropical cyclones. It highlights that 70% of billion-dollar tropical cyclones in the U.S. since 1980 underwent rapid intensification, contributing to over $1.4 trillion in damages and nearly 7,000 deaths.

Human-caused climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of wildfires in the U.S., exposing millions of homes and hundreds of thousands of miles of roads and power lines to risk. Approximately one-third of U.S. homes and 116 million people are located in counties with high or very high wildfire risk, with the highest concentrations in Western states and Florida. Between 2000 and 2019, over 265,000 miles of roads and power lines in the contiguous U.S. were exposed to large fires. The risk is further amplified by the expansion of the wildland-urban interface, which grew by about 31% between 1990 and 2020.

A coalition of advocates argues that the EPA's disparate impact regulations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 are essential for protecting marginalized communities from disproportionate environmental harms. The document details systemic environmental racism, provides case studies of both successful and failed civil rights enforcement, and urges the EPA to strengthen rather than roll back these protections.

The report finds that August 2024 temperatures were elevated across much of the U.S., particularly in the South and Southwest, with Texas experiencing the highest anomalies. Using the Climate Shift Index (CSI), the analysis shows that the Southwest and South had the highest number of days where temperatures were at least three times more likely due to climate change. San Juan, Puerto Rico, recorded its hottest August on record, and Amarillo, Texas, was the most unusually hot city, 6.27°F above normal.

The OCI+ tool provides data on the methane intensity of global oil and gas resources, highlighting that the sector is responsible for an estimated one-third of global methane emissions. The tool aims to help policymakers, investors, and civil society prioritize the highest-emitting assets for mitigation. The document emphasizes that over half of industry methane emissions can be profitably reduced and notes the role of satellite monitoring in identifying super-emitters. Additionally, the OCI+ includes an environmental justice feature to map the risks posed by gas flaring to nearby communities, specifically utilizing 2022 US flaring data.

The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) evaluated 38 federal agencies on their adherence to scientific integrity metrics, finding that 71% scored 'poor' or 'worst'. The report argues that political interference in science disproportionately harms underserved communities and proposes a blueprint for the next presidential administration to strengthen scientific integrity through better policy enforcement, transparency, and the integration of environmental justice principles.