The Biden administration today released new guidance on the application of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s Build America Buy America (BABA) policy. BABA expands, harmonizes, and modernizes Buy America domestic content preferences to more infrastructure programs and projects. In response to the release of the new guidance, the BlueGreen Alliance released the following statement from Executive…

Today, U.S. Senator Kyrsten Sinema joined the BlueGreen Alliance and labor leaders from around the state for a tour of Digital Building Components’ Fabrication Plant and a roundtable to discuss the economic benefits of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and federal investments in advanced energy and infrastructure.

The build out of clean energy and domestic clean technology manufacturing and supply chains is not only good for our climate and economy, but can support our energy independence and security. We have an opportunity to pass legislation that will address climate change, create and support good union jobs, and benefit workers and communities across the country. And we can do this while getting a massive return on investment and ensuring our competitiveness in the global energy economy. 

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced today the allocation of $3.16 billion for the Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). The WAP provides funds for low-income households to increase the energy efficiency of their homes, lowering energy bills.

The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced today the upcoming auction of two lease areas for the development of offshore wind in the Carolina Long Bay. The leases cover more than 110,000 acres and once developed, could provide enough offshore wind energy to power nearly 500,000 homes.

Oregon State Governor Kate Brown has signed into law House Bill 4139, which will ensure the state is modernizing infrastructure in a more environmentally friendly way to fight climate change. The new law, Buy Clean Oregon, will require state regulators to conduct life cycle assessments for select construction and maintenance materials used for public infrastructure…

U.S. Reps. Jason Crow (D-CO) and David Rouzer (R-NC) introduced the Championing Local Efforts to Advance Resilience (CLEAR) Act this week. The bipartisan bill authorizes $200 million annually for five years in grants to help states and tribes take steps to improve their resilience to natural disasters and the impacts of climate change; encourages grant…

Hydrogen is an interesting opportunity to put people to work in the clean economy using the careers and skill-sets that they have today. Hydrogen is currently produced for a number of uses in the U.S., and reducing emissions from that process will allow workers to retain jobs while we make progress on climate goals. The industry also requires existing skill-sets in construction and operations and maintenance and hydrogen as a fuel can substitute for fossil fuels for some industrial processes. 

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced a new initiative to build up the nation’s lithium battery supply chain during a meeting of the Biden administration’s Interagency Working Group on Coal and Power Plant Communities today in West Virginia.

Today, the BlueGreen Alliance released two new videos featuring members from West Virginia local unions—the United Steelworkers (USW), American Federation of Teachers West Virginia (AFT-WV), Service Employees International Union (SEIU)—and members of the National Black Lung Association, including a former mineworker suffering from Black Lung Disease and a woman who lost her husband to the disease.

President Joe Biden will deliver his State of the Union Address this evening and is expected to note several policy wins from his first year in office, including the passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

The bipartisan deal is a start, not the end, of what we need to build back better. Congress must act boldly and invest in America to build a clean, prosperous, and equitable economy.