Top congressional Democrats are calling on the Biden administration to bolster its commitment to environmental justice and ensure that the Inflation Reduction Act's climate investments help disadvantaged communities, according to details shared exclusively with The Climate 202.

In a letter sent Tuesday, more than 60 Democrats urged the White House to strengthen implementation of the Justice40 Initiative, which seeks to send at least 40 percent of the benefits of federal climate investments to communities that are overburdened by pollution, climate change and other environmental hazards.

The lawmakers made the following four demands of the Biden administration:

• Consider the 40 percent goal in the Justice40 Initiative to be a “floor” and not a “ceiling” for investments for disadvantaged communities.


• Ensure programs covered by Justice40 “do no harm” in disadvantaged communities by increasing pollution or greenhouse gas emissions.


• Ensure programs covered by Justice40 provide well-paying jobs with good benefits, with a focus on hiring members of disadvantaged communities.


• Establish a Climate Justice and Equity Office within the White House Office of Management and Budget to oversee a “whole-of-government” approach to Justice40.

“To maximize benefits and correct for chronic underinvestment, we strongly recommend that implementation guidance clarify that the Initiative’s 40% target is a funding floor, not a ceiling,” the lawmakers wrote. “We also recommend that the guidance apply this target to investments in disadvantaged communities, not only to overall benefits in such communities.”

The letter was led by Sen. Edward J. Markey (Mass.), chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Clean Air, Climate and Nuclear Safety; Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney (N.Y.), chair of the House Oversight and Reform Committee; Rep. Ro Khanna (Calif.), chair of the House Oversight and Reform Subcommittee on Environment; and Reps. Rashida Tlaib (Mich.) and Cori Bush (Mo.).

“Our movement is powered by the frontline communities and young people most endangered by the existential threat of climate change, and my job in Congress is to ensure that federal resources reach the Black, Brown and Indigenous communities who need them most,” Markey said in a statement.

“The Inflation Reduction Act has the power to shape a generation of climate action that can build health and wealth in disadvantaged communities, but only if we develop and use a powerful Justice40 framework to right the historic wrongs of environmental injustice,” he added.

The letter was addressed to Brenda Mallory, chair of the Council on Environmental Quality; Shalanda Young, director of the Office of Management and Budget; and Gina McCarthy, the outgoing White House national climate adviser.

Asked for comment, a senior administration official said in an email: “President Biden’s Justice40 initiative is the most significant whole-of-government effort to advance environmental justice in our nation’s history, and we’re looking forward to carrying this critical work forward in partnership with members of Congress, our White House Interagency Council, the [White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council] and environmental justice advocates across the country.”

The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly.

Environmental justice in the Inflation Reduction Act

The Inflation Reduction Act contains a record $60 billion investment in environmental justice, including several new grant programs championed by Markey.

To secure the vote of Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.), however, Democratic leadership made some concessions that could prolong the life of fossil fuel infrastructure in front-line communities.

• The measure requires the Interior Department to hold new oil and gas lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico for at least 10 years.


• Democratic leadership also agreed to pursue separate legislation to overhaul the permitting process for energy infrastructure projects, including the Mountain Valley natural gas pipeline.

Bush, who was a Black Lives Matter activist before coming to Congress in 2021, said she thinks the Inflation Reduction Act will deliver an overall benefit to communities of color that are disproportionately saddled with pollution — as long as the law is implemented with Justice40 in mind.

“We've seen a lot of money invested in climate in the [new law], but we need additional assurances that these funds will be distributed equitably,” Bush said in an interview. “We need to make sure those guardrails are there to ensure that 40 percent investment.”

Bush added that she plans to urge her colleagues to oppose the side deal on permitting struck by Manchin and Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.).

“Just because two people came together to work on the deal, I will not allow St. Louis's vote to be taken for granted,” she said. “It's people who are Black, Brown and Indigenous, and people of low wealth, who would pay the heaviest price.”