Washington, D.C. — Today, the White House released interim guidance for implementing the Justice40 Initiative, a commitment from the Biden administration to distribute 40 percent of all climate and clean energy investment benefits to disadvantaged and overburdened communities. These recommendations include directing agencies to devise methods to quantify investment benefits, identifying pilot programs to provide a road map for delivering real and meaningful community benefits, and prioritizing stakeholder consultation with environmental justice communities throughout.
In response, John Podesta, founder and chair of the board of directors at the Center for American Progress, and Christy Goldfuss, senior vice president for Energy and Environment Policy at CAP, released the following statement:
Today marks an historic step forward on the long march toward climate justice. We are pleased that the White House Justice40 implementation guidance released this week includes many of the recommendations made by the Equitable and Just National Climate Platform, the White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council, and CAP to support transparency and accountability and maximize the benefits delivered to disadvantaged communities. These recommendations will be key to ensuring that President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better plan delivers on the just, pollution-free future it promises.
For too long, communities of color, low income, frontline and fence line communities have been overexposed to a toxic legacy of pollution and other forms of institutional racism and marginalization. Today’s interim guidance is an important step toward meaningfully addressing these injustices. Now, the agencies must take immediate steps to turn the White House guidance into action to effectively implement Justice40 and make progress toward the initiative’s goals so that all Americans can realize their fundamental right to breathe clean air, drink safe water, and live in a healthy and prosperous community.
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