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Thursday, April 25, 2024

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SCOTUS skeptical that state abortion bans conflict with federal health care law; Iowa advocates for immigrants push back on Texas-style deportation bill; new hearings, same arguments on both sides for ND pipeline project; clean-air activists to hold "die-in" Friday at LA City Hall.

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"Squad" member Summer Lee wins her primary with a pro-peace platform, Biden signs huge foreign aid bills including support for Ukraine and Israel, and the Arizona House repeals an abortion ban as California moves to welcome Arizona doctors.

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The urban-rural death divide is widening for working-age Americans, many home internet connections established for rural students during COVID have been broken, and a new federal rule aims to put the "public" back in public lands.

Climate Advocates: Biden Plan Will Create AZ Clean-Energy Jobs

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Thursday, April 29, 2021   

PHOENIX, Ariz. -- After the White House's Global Climate Summit last week, groups in Arizona and elsewhere are backing President Joe Biden's goal of cutting carbon emissions by half and creating thousands of clean energy jobs by 2030.

The Biden administration's American Jobs Plan targets infrastructure investments designed to bring 100% renewable energy, decarbonize the power sector and reduce pollution in the transportation sector.

Anne Kelley, vice president for government relations at the consulting firm Ceres, believes the plan will drive job growth and economic development.

"It incentivizes and creates opportunities for the clean-energy sector to expand in states like Arizona," Kelley asserted. "With more clean-energy facilities, there should be more jobs to build and maintain those clean-energy facilities."

Biden's plan is aimed at creating thousands of higher-paying union jobs in a clean-energy economy. However, it is opposed by Republicans, who object to a planned tax increase on corporations and wealthy individuals to cover the plan's trillion-dollar price tag.

Kelly argued despite the projected cost, it is important to "go big" on infrastructure.

"What we learned in 2009 was that the $90 billion boost stimulus wasn't enough to elevate and build up the energy sector," Kelley recounted. "It is going to be a bigger boost this time, and it's in the form of primarily clean-energy tax credits."

She added the plan contains other benefits for states like Arizona.

"There's a lot of just practical infrastructure that's attractive, I think, to all 50 states," Kelley remarked. "There's roads and bridges, a tremendous amount of very basic baseline infrastructure, some resilient infrastructure."

Observers said while many aspects of the infrastructure and jobs bills still are being negotiated, Biden hopes to have the legislation approved and signed by mid-summer.

Disclosure: Energy Media contributes to our fund for reporting on Energy Policy. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


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