Washington, D.C. — The Trump administration proposed an outline for the federal budget that calls for the elimination of funding for multilateral climate initiatives including the Green Climate Fund and the Climate Investment Funds. These cuts come as part of an overall 28 percent reduction to the combined funding for the U.S. Department of State and U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, and a 35 percent reduction for Treasury International Programs.
The Center for American Progress has released a column outlining why this proposal is deeply misguided.
Funding for low-carbon and climate-resilient development accounts for only a small fraction of the overall federal budget—indeed, the entire international affairs budget represents only approximately 1 percent of total spending—yet it is vital for the communities around the globe that are confronting the dual challenges of poverty and climate change. It is also vital to U.S. interests.
“Seeking to cut climate aid is manifestly at odds with the America first philosophy that the Trump administration claims to champion,” said Christy Goldfuss, Vice President for Energy and Environment Policy. “It betrays American values and is reckless with our economy, national security, and public health and welfare.”
Climate-informed development assistance serves to mitigate the national security risks of climate change, help obviate further climate-driven damage to U.S. communities and ecosystems, and create economic opportunities for U.S. companies. Because of these benefits, international climate finance has a history of bipartisan support in the United States: President George W. Bush, for example, pledged $2 billion to the Climate Investment Funds.
Click here to read the column.
For more information on this topic or to speak with an expert, contact Tom Caiazza at [email protected] or 202.481.7141.