Economic
Double Trouble: Disruptions to Federal Food Assistance Program (SNAP) and Low Income Heating and Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Leave Families and Children in Crisis as Winter Approaches
An analysis of which states will be hardest hit and the financial impact As the federal shutdown continues into its second month, households across the country are facing a looming crisis with uncertain funding for food and heating assistance—just as the weather is turning cold. Under pressure from the courts, the Administration has agreed to…
Polluter Pays: A Pathway to Affordability and Financing Climate Justice
By Jennifer Moon & Brandon Dawson – States and localities are leading the way towards holding fossil fuel interests accountable for the climate damage they cause. They are sending a message that communities will not bear the costs for the harm caused by others. Whether it’s through legislation related to environmental damage from past climate…
Adding Fuel to the Fire: How the Republican Spending Bill Guts Climate and Environmental Justice Programs and Compounds Harm to Communities Across the US
On July 4, 2025, President Donald Trump signed into law H.R. 1, also known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act”: the massive spending bill that is expected to be the landmark legislative accomplishment of the first year of the President’s second term. The climate, environmental, and energy provisions of H.R. 1 are a concerted…
Resource: Defending Grant Agreements from Anti-DEI Attacks
By Sylvia Chi, Legal and Advocacy Director – Among the flurry of Executive Orders (EOs) issued by President Donald Trump in the first days of his second term, the two EOs that claim to target “illegal and immoral” Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) activities appear to have significantly influenced the Administration’s approach to administering federal…
Taxpayer Costs for Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage: A Fiscal Disaster in the Making
Authors: Lew Daly, Just Solutions Doug Koplow, Earth Track Key Report Findings The 45Q tax credit expansion for Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage, passed as part of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, dramatically increases the expected cost to taxpayers without adequate oversight or transparency to ensure fiscal integrity or program efficacy. Independent analyses suggest…
What Can We Learn from Social Policy to Advance Climate Justice?
Increasing the capacity of frontline communities to meet the current and future challenges brought about by climate change will require a significant future expansion of assistance programs and resources. There are decades worth of lessons to be learned from the design and implementation of past laws and policies that are intended to improve the lives…
Delivering Climate Benefits to Disadvantaged Communities: Lessons Learned from Social Policy
Increasing the capacity of frontline communities – households with low income and families who are most affected by climate change – to meet the current and future challenges brought about by climate change will require a significant future expansion of assistance programs and resources. There are decades worth of lessons to be learned from the…
How a public option for basic financial transactions supports household climate resilience
Climate justice is inextricably linked with economic justice, and individual and household economic precarity is increasingly important in the context of the climate crisis. As in so many other aspects of climate change, the household finances of low-income and communities of color are already experiencing impacts “first and worst.” Last fall, the U.S. Department of…
Webinar: EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund & Green Financing 101 Webinar:
EPA’s $27 billion Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) will provide competitive grants to finance clean energy and climate projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions. As the “single largest investment in clean energy, environmental justice, and carbon pollution reduction in American history,” what are the impacts and opportunities for community-based organizations? The GGRF Best Practices Alliance…
Webinar: What it Really Means to be a Federal Grantee – Accomplishments and Challenges
Emerald Cities Collaborative, The Climate & Clean Energy Equity Fund, and Just Solutions hosted an informative webinar about the experience of applying to and receiving federal funding. As opportunities for federal funding for environmental justice efforts become more available, it is essential that community organizations understand the process and challenges of being a federal grantee.…
