Climate mayors’ top priority under Trump: Defend the IRA

The reelection of former president Donald Trump is terrible news for cities that have finally been able to accelerate progress on climate and clean energy goals in recent years thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act. That momentum will end if Trump follows through on a campaign pledge to rescind all unspent money under the law.

I spoke with Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb yesterday about the role of city-level climate leaders during a second Trump presidency. Bibb is chair of Climate Mayors, a bipartisan network of more than 350 mayors from across the country that has vowed to keep leading on climate action regardless of White House leadership.

Priority No. 1: Defending the Inflation Reduction Act.

“It’s going to be incumbent upon mayors, and also Republican governors and members of Congress who have seen the benefits of these investments, to make the business case to the Trump-Vance administration,” Bibb said.

The stakes in his city include a $575 million commitment to help mining company Cleveland-Cliffs transition to green steel production, as well as a $129 million regional grant that’s funding solar projects on brownfields and former landfills. Tax incentives under the law spurred an area welding equipment company to launch a line of electric vehicle fast charging stations.

“I don’t want to cede our innovation in the EV sector to China. I don’t want to cede our innovation around green energy and renewables to Europe,” Bibb said. ​“We have to make the case … on why these investments are important for America’s national security and America’s economic competitiveness.”

To make that case, Climate Mayors hopes to enlist allies, including Republican elected officials and business leaders. Bibb noted that Exxon Mobil CEO Darren Woods has publicly urged Trump not to abandon U.S. leadership on climate change.

“I think it’s going to be [about] having the right kind of conversation to make the case to this incoming leadership in the White House,” Bibb said.

And if that doesn’t work, expect Climate Mayors to keep pushing for ways to act collectively to advance climate and clean energy. For example, the organization announced a commitment this summer by more than 350 mayors to electrify half of their fleets and increase EV chargers by at least 500% by 2030.

“We’ve been here before. We’ll get through this,” Bibb said, but ​“it’s going to be a lot harder if we don’t have a federal partner in Washington, D.C.”

More clean energy news

🏭 Federal climate action: As Republicans win control of the White House, advocates expect a massive rollback of U.S. climate initiatives echoing President Trump’s first term, including gutting EPA rules and preventing the Justice Department from defending regulations in court. (E&E News)

🌎 Global climate goals: President-elect Trump’s likely abdication of U.S. leadership on climate diminishes prospects for this week’s COP29 summit, as scientists warn the Earth has likely passed the 1.5°C warming threshold this year. (Reuters, Associated Press)

⚖️ Climate advocacy: Climate advocates who helped shape the Inflation Reduction Act discuss ways the U.S. can continue cutting emissions under a Trump administration, as climate groups say they’re better prepared to defend existing policies than they were during Trump’s first term. (Canary Media, Inside Climate News)

💰 An IRA 2.0: Congressional Democrats are unlikely to pass an anticipated follow-up to the Inflation Reduction Act, but hope increasing Republican support will preserve existing tax credits — though a Republican analyst says that’s a ​“false hope.” (E&E News)

🏢 The EPA: Current EPA staffers ​“are preparing for the worst” amid the incoming administration’s plans to gut the agency and replace scientists and other experts with political loyalists, with Trump already naming former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin to lead the agency. (The Guardian, E&E News)

📉 Solar and wind companies: Share prices for solar companies plummeted in the days after the election as investors fear repeal of federal incentives, while offshore wind companies also saw their stock prices plunge in response to Trump’s pledge for a moratorium on offshore wind. (CNBC; Recharge News, subscription)

🔋 The battery supply chain: While some analysts predict a ​“U.S. battery boom” as Trump removes restrictions on mining, others note that policy support across the entire supply chain will be necessary to grow the electric vehicle industry. (E&E News)

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