TOPLINE:
The One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) rescinded about $20 billion in taxpayer dollars that would otherwise have been used to fund wasteful climate programs.
BACKGROUND:
The 2022 Inflation Reduction Act authorized about $120 billion in grants and loans for energy and climate programs for certain businesses, state and local governments, and other entities, at the expense of American taxpayers. These subsidies significantly expanded the federal government’s involvement in directing capital toward green energy, greenhouse gas emissions-reduction efforts, and other climate-related projects.
What OBBB Did:
- Rescinded about $14.5 billion in taxpayer-funded environmental and climate spending, including green energy loans and loan guarantees, so-called environmental and climate justice block grants, and methane reduction incentives.
- Rescinded over $1 billion in funding for “green” upgrades to government buildings and certain housing, and for measuring and labeling the greenhouse gas emissions of construction materials and products.
- Rescinded nearly $5 billion in funding for transportation programs that direct taxpayer dollars toward zero-emission medium- and heavy-duty vehicles, low-carbon transportation materials, sustainable aviation fuel, and other politically favored initiatives.
Why It Matters?
- Government favoritism weakens market competition and innovation and spreads costs across American taxpayers while concentrating gains for a few.
- These rescissions scaled back government transfers of taxpayer dollars to politically favored interest groups through climate and environmental programs.
- Rescinding wasteful spending sets an important precedent. All too often, lawmakers treat government spending programs as irrevocable.
Where Can I Find Changes?
BOTTOMLINE:
The national debt is over $39 trillion. While the scale of OBBB’s rescissions is modest in comparison, getting the nation’s fiscal house in order must start with the low-hanging fruit—like eliminating frivolous spending that wastes taxpayer dollars and undermines free-market competition.
This memo is part of the One Big Beautiful Booklet, a collection of more than 60 memos that examine and summarize the major aspects of the One Big Beautiful Bill – the signature legislative achievement of President Trump and the 119th Congress.
