The newly signed Inflation Reduction Act carves out $369 billion to make our nation greener.
Texas leads the nation in emissions. Luke Metzger, executive director of Environment Texas has lobbied for such a bill for years. He calls the bill historic. "It gives us a fighting chance to fight and solve the climate crisis. Scientists tell us we need to rapidly cut the emissions that are contributing to global warming."
This bill provides tax incentives to help people buy electric vehicles and install solar panels on their rooftops or purchase more energy efficient appliances.
Metzger says we're seeing the impact of global warming this summer in Texas. "With record temperatures all around the state, droughts drying our drinking water supplies and wildfires raging. We know it's critical we cut pollution contributing to the warming of the atmosphere, or those impacts are only going to get worse."
The act includes a $7500 tax credit to buy a new electric vehicle and $4000 for a used one. There is money available to buy a heat pump. There's also funding to build wind, solar and battery farms.
According to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer's office, the deal is set to slash US greenhouse gas emissions 40% by 2030. Metzger notes scientists have said we need to cut emissions by 50% by 2030.
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