To win over climate-concerned voters in 2024, environmental groups and many Democrats say they must raise awareness of a signature President Biden achievement.
Updated: 12 minutes agoSolar panel installers, from left, Matthew Sanchez, Derrick Cranford and Jordan Baniaga work on a Las Vegas home in August. Solar panel installation tax credits are a perk of the year-old climate law. Polling suggests most Americans know little to nothing about it.
“I don’t know what they are really doing” regarding climate, she said, while on her way out of a coffee shop south of Las Vegas. “I only hear the bad stuff. If [Biden’s] doing good stuff - I don’t know. I don’t know a single Democrat who’s excited about Biden.” Many are only just starting to learn, said Karen Skelton, a senior adviser in the Biden administration. “It’s so new, it’s hard to imagine unless it’s happening right in front of you, how transformative what we’re going through is.”Nevada is whipsawed by both extreme weather and divided politics, and it is regularly courted by both parties and their big-dollar donors because of its swing-state status.
“I want people to understand just what’s in that bill and what they can take advantage of,” Lee said before a recent community meeting held at a library to explain the law’s consumer programs. Her push to Nevada voters? “That we’ve gotten results.” “It’s all hands on deck to educate the public,” Margie Alt, director of Climate Action Campaign, an advocacy coalition of several environmental and progressive groups, said in an email. The IRA’s investments are now going out to communities, she added, and “we are making it our business to be sure people see, hear and feel the benefits.”
Biden bet big that he could work with Congress to approve a giant spending bill to be the cornerstone of his climate agenda. It eschewed taxes or almost anything punitive in favor largely of subsidies for developing cleaner energy. Many of those benefits go straight to retail consumers, with others designed to boost manufacturing and job growth for Americans.
“All this spending, sooner or later, something’s got to give,” said Velasquez, who lives on a straight-line street called Romance Circle northwest of downtown Las Vegas. He said that addressing climate change is important but that he distrusts many Democrats. “They’re so liberal, they spend, spend, spend, spend, spend.”
Rep. Mark Amodei , who represents the region, signed a letter supporting Redwood’s successful request for a $2 billion loan from the Energy Department. But he later went on to vote against the Inflation Reduction Act and rescind programs that would provide funding for other clean-energy projects. At the Windmill Library event, organized in conjunction with the League of Conservation Voters, Lee listed several of those programs as she spoke to an audience of about 40 people, mostly her local supporters and environmentalists. Her list includes a 30% tax credit on installing rooftop solar, a $150 credit for homeowners who pay to review their home for ways to save energy and upfront discounts for upgrading to more efficient appliances.
Based on Sunrun’s calculations, Ruiz could save hundreds of dollars a month on his power bills in part because of the IRA. But he still doesn’t trust the law’s intentions or durability. “The government isn’t going to do s--- for you,” he added.
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