The following is a guest article by Daren Bakst.
Lawmakers took a significant step toward ending the Green New Deal. In the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), they started to dismantle the radical “green” subsidies embedded in the partisan 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), a law that didn’t get a single Republican vote in the House or Senate.
For Americans who care about affordable, reliable electricity, this is a big win. Lawmakers who made this happen, all of whom were Republicans, should be commended.
The OBBBA eliminated many of the IRA’s energy and environmental subsidies that had been projected to cost over $1 trillion. The price tag, though, isn’t even the biggest problem with these policies: The spending forms a central planning scheme to dramatically change how Americans produce and use energy.
The IRA tried to shift electricity generation from affordable and reliable sources of electricity (e.g. coal and natural gas) to unreliable and costly sources (e.g. wind and solar). It was filled with subsidies to prop up electric vehicles at the expense of gas-powered cars and kill off the use of natural gas appliances. It also created numerous programs at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that are, in effect, slush funds to spend billions of dollars for such things as community activism and tree canopies to provide shade.
In response, the OBBBA repealed numerous electric vehicle tax credits and many credits aimed at eliminating the use of natural gas in homes and other buildings. And eligibility for the major tax credits for wind and solar projects (the production and investment tax credits) have been significantly tightened, thanks to the OBBA: The credits won’t be available for projects placed in service after December 31, 2027, unless construction on the project began by July 4, 2026.
Further, the OBBBA rescinds unobligated funds for a litany of IRA programs administered by the EPA. This includes the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, a $27 billion program that creates slush funds for progressive nonprofits. A handful of nonprofits were selected to receive a whopping $2 billion or more to dole out at their discretion. One nonprofit was chosen to get $8 billion to shell out as it deemed fit.
This entire program is rife for corruption, waste, and abuse. Fortunately, Congress didn’t just rescind unobligated funds for the program but also repealed it entirely, so it no longer exists in law and can’t be used in the future without new legislation reestablishing the program.
This is by no means a full list of the good deeds done in the OBBBA to fight back against the Green New Deal provisions in the IRA. However, there’s still more to do. Some objectionable tax credits were extended or expanded in the OBBBA, such as the tax credits for “clean” transportation fuel and carbon sequestration. Phasing out subsidies instead of eliminating them is problematic. Many tax credits are being phased out over time, which means they are still available for now. Even the major wind and solar credits will be blowing around for a while. Until they are repealed and have not been brought back for years, there is a decent chance they will resurge as they repeatedly have for decades or simply be extended because they ultimately may not be eliminated.
To fight the Green New Deal, lawmakers must remain vigilant and recognize this will be a continuous battle. Climate extremists will use all possible means – subsidies, regulation, and taxes – to kill off reliable energy and change how Americans use energy, with little regard for higher prices and reduced freedom.
For now, lawmakers have exceeded expectations when it comes to dismantling the IRA subsidies. They deserve kudos for a job well done.
This piece originally appeared at TheCenterSquare.com and has been republished here with permission.
