America Needs State and Local Climate Leadership Now More Than Ever
As the country prepares for a second Trump presidency, climate advocates are concerned about the future of American climate action. The incoming administration and its allies have campaigned on expanding fossil fuel operations, repealing federal climate funding, rolling back environmental regulations, and withdrawing the U.S. from the Paris Agreement for a second time. While pundits speculate on the legality of executive and Congressional action, it’s no secret that the Trump administration will use every tool at its disposal to thwart all forms of climate progress. Despite federal leadership’s opposition, states and cities give reason for cautious optimism as they are primed to drive climate action across the country.
During Trump's first term, states and cities stepped up as climate champions in the face of federal resistance. Immediately after Trump’s first withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, a bipartisan coalition of Governors formed the U.S. Climate Alliance—representing over half of the U.S. population—to signal state-level commitment to the U.S. emissions reduction target. From 2015-2020, states set ambitious goals and drove progress forward, enacting over 400 decarbonization measures across the U.S. Remarkably, nearly a third of these measures passed in Republican-controlled legislatures, underscoring the bipartisan nature of climate action.
This time, subnational governments are bolstered by powerful economic and political tailwinds driving clean energy expansion, ensuring forward momentum regardless of potential federal obstruction. As a once in a generation investment in climate, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has catalyzed clean energy growth—which along with other White House policies has resulted in over $200 billion in cleantech manufacturing investments. Notably, Republican districts are reaping the biggest economic rewards, with nearly 60% of new clean energy projects—accounting for 85% of investments and 68% of new jobs—located in Republican-controlled areas. This has spurred growing Republican support for clean energy, evidenced by 18 Republican Congressmen recently urging House leadership to protect the IRA’s clean energy tax credits. Red and purple states like Texas, Utah, and Nevada are now leading the nation in solar and wind deployment.
Source: Bloomberg
Under the Biden-Harris administration, states continued to accelerate climate ambition. A whopping 45 states submitted climate action plans under the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG) program, which could reduce emissions 7% by 2030. Moreover, 25 states have now set greenhouse gas reduction targets, while 36 states have established clean energy and renewable portfolio standards, including 24 states with 100% clean energy targets. Notably, all 50 states developed electric vehicle infrastructure deployment plans under a Department of Transportation program. The challenge for states now is rapidly implementing these plans, even as they face a hostile administration and staffing and budgetary constraints.
Cities, too, are mobilizing—with coalitions like Climate Mayors and C40 Cities facilitating coordination and knowledge-sharing. Immediately after this year’s election, these coalitions reaffirmed their climate commitments, alongside cross-sectoral groups like America is All In. Cities, like states, have developed robust climate action plans, and are implementing strategies in key areas such as transportation, the built environment, and power generation.
With inauguration day rapidly approaching, federal agencies are rushing to get IRA funding out the door. In a prescient move, perhaps anticipating a second Trump presidency, agencies like the EPA structured programs such as the $27 billion Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund to issue a majority of funds as multi-billion dollar grants to a handful of large nonprofits for redistribution. While states and cities advocate with their Congressional delegations to protect IRA investments, they must also look to these grantees and pursue other creative financing mechanisms for climate action. By highlighting the economic benefits of these investments, subnational governments can appeal to Republican leadership’s priorities: lowering costs for American families. Although there is a risk of the Trump administration clawing back substantial portions of the IRA, a full repeal remains unlikely since projects have broken ground across the U.S.
Public sentiment has also dramatically shifted since the last Trump presidency. In the November election, voters approved local climate measures even in red states like Louisiana and South Dakota. Regardless of whether Republican leaders recognize it, Americans are feeling the devastating effects of worsening weather patterns. Further, even states that President-elect Trump won also elected environmental leaders to the U.S. Senate. A post-election poll from the bipartisan Environmental Protection Network demonstrated overwhelming public support—including among Trump voters—for the EPA.
Source: Environmental Protection Network
None of this minimizes the damage a second Trump presidency could inflict on climate progress. Meeting America's Paris commitments—50-52% emissions reductions by 2030—would be extraordinarily difficult without federal support. Current projections indicate that even with existing federal and state policies, the nation is not on track to reach those targets. With the upcoming Trump administration ending just a year shy of the 2030 deadline, state- and city-led climate action will only get us part of the way to achieving our emissions targets.
There is no time to waste. State and local leaders can't afford to sit on the sidelines while the Trump administration, backed by a Republican Congress and conservative Supreme Court, unravels climate progress. Instead, governors, mayors, and other subnational leaders must leverage the tailwinds at their backs—clear economic benefits, strong interstate collaboration, and growing public support—to continue driving the clean energy transition. They must focus on what's within their control: implementing ambitious clean energy standards, electrifying transportation, upgrading building codes, and putting IRA dollars to work in their communities. With the urgency of the climate crisis only growing, state and local leaders must be bold, creative, and resolute in their pursuit of a clean energy future.
