In his State of the Union address, President Joe Biden will be able to tout environmental wins, but any further federal action will largely depend on the pace set by the executive branch.
In his speech last year Biden largely discussed climate in the context of savings that energy efficiency measures could provide the average family and the effects that could have on inflation. Ultimately, that became the same pitch for the $369 billion climate, health care and tax law that Biden signed in August.
Climate modelers estimated that as implemented the bill could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 40 percent by the end of the decade. That would place the U.S. significantly closer to the Biden administration’s goal of reducing emissions 50 to 52 percent by the end of the decade, which it announced after rejoining the Paris Agreement in April 2021.
