Chart: Most voters support climate bill, including majority of Republicans

Canary Media’s chart of the week translates crucial data about the clean energy transition into a visual format.

American voters are overwhelmingly supportive of the Inflation Reduction Act, according to a new poll conducted by Data for Progress and Climate Power. You wouldn’t know it from the name, but the bill contains a huge amount of spending for climate protection and clean energy — $369 billion over 10 years. If it passes, it will be by far the biggest and most important climate bill in U.S. history. 

In a survey of 1,377 likely voters on August 1 and 2, Data for Progress briefly summarized the bill’s contents and asked voters for their views on it:

Some lawmakers in Congress have proposed the Inflation Reduction Act to lower costs for families. This bill will ramp up clean energy production, like solar and wind power, which will reduce energy costs and our dependence on foreign oil. It will also lower prescription drug costs and health insurance premiums for millions of Americans. It will be fully paid for by closing tax loopholes for corporations and the wealthiest Americans. It will reduce the national deficit by at least $300 billion. Do you support or oppose the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022?

Nearly three-quarters of all likely voters said they supported the bill, and only 22 percent said they opposed it. Even more than half of Republican voters voiced support.

The survey also asked voters for their views on a dozen specific provisions in the bill. The most popular: ​“standards to ensure that businesses receiving government clean energy tax credits pay their workers a fair wage and make their goods in America,” which received, on average across party affiliations, 76 percent support. Even the least popular provision still got 60 percent support: ​“consumer tax credits to reduce electric vehicle (EV) costs for lower and middle-income Americans by $7,500 for new electric vehicles and $4,000 for used electric vehicles.”

As Canary Media has reported, the bill also contains a wide range of other climate-friendly provisions, including ones to promote solar energy, energy storage, and projects to electrify homes and make them more energy efficient.