Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 Advances Inconsistent Climate Policy

Policymakers are heralding the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 as a victory for environmental justice and climate solutions, but these claims are misleading. Responses to the climate crisis must tackle its overwhelming cause: fossil fuels. Incentivizing electrification while requiring new oil and gas lease sales and locking in fossil fuel production for years to come is not just inconsistent policy, it is inhumane policy given the accelerating impacts of climate change and the shrinking window to act. While politicians may compromise, the climate won’t.

It’s true that the bill, if passed, would be the United States’ single largest financial commitment in response to the climate emergency and that it is a down payment on a transition to renewables. But it’s also riddled with schemes that launder fossil fuels with carbon capture and hydrogen production and lock in reliance on oil and gas that is simply incompatible with a safe climate and a livable future. Fossil fuel-backed technologies slated for construction in frontline communities and opening new areas to risky, dangerous projects will undermine any purported environmental justice gains.

These schemes aren’t just technological. They’re also financial — take the 45Q tax credit as an example. This is a giveaway to polluters that entrenches and extends the life of emitting facilities like coal plants right as we need to urgently transition from fossil fuels. The tax credit should be eliminated, not expanded or extended.

Avoiding further climate catastrophe demands massive investment in renewables, electric vehicles, and energy efficiency, and immediate measures to halt oil and gas expansion and accelerate the phaseout of fossil fuels. It’s time for a do-over.