The Inflation Reduction Act is Driving a Clean Energy Boom in Rural, GOP Districts.
Will Trump and House Speaker Johnson be able to gut the Democrats' signature climate law through budget reconciliation? That depends on a handful of House and Senate Republicans.
President Donald Trump entered office in late January with the intention of canceling much of the Democrats” Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Trump and many of his Republican Congressional allies have long-favored ending policies that incentive the ongoing transition to clean energy. Even as solar and wind energy have become cheaper than fossil fuel energy, Trump and many MAGA Republicans have remained opposed to the rise of clean energy, especially when it comes to wind and solar projects.
The Democrats’ 2022 IRA, with an assist from some sections of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA, also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law) and CHIPS and Science Act, delivered hundreds of billions of dollars in direct funding and tax credits for a variety of clean energy projects and manufacturing facilities. These policies, along with the cost-effectiveness of solar and wind, have ushered in a clean energy boom during 2023 and 2024.
This clean energy boom is happening primarily in Republican House Districts and states. And a large number of these projects are taking place in rural America.
According to E2’s* January report, “The State of the Clean Energy Boom,” since the IRA was passed in August of 2022, 131 major clean energy projects have been built in rural America. These 131 projects represent $55.25 billion in new investment, and 62,117 new clean energy jobs. Rural communities landed 15.3% of new clean energy jobs and 17.44% of clean energy projects during the period.
The rural projects include a mix of renewable electricity, battery manufacturing, electric The rural clean energy boom includes renewable energy, electric vehicles, battery production, and grid projects. Development plans include 39 new battery manufacturing sites, 19 new/expanded electric vehicle manufacturing facilities, 42 solar and wind manufacturing plants, and 18 clean technology projects.
E2 also reports that “85 congressional districts across 33 states are home to new clean energy projects in rural areas. A majority of projects (110), jobs (53,759), and investments ($47.07 billion) in rural communities are represented by Republican members of Congress.”
Among all 751 clean energy projects in development tracked by the E2 study (both rural and urban), more than half are in districts represented by House Republicans. 405 clean energy projects were/are located in 152 GOP districts across the country. These projects are estimated to create 216,322 jobs and generate more than $204 billion in investments. Of the 152 Republican members of Congress with new clean energy projects in their districts, 140 of them voted against the clean energy plan on August 12, 2022. 11 of the 12 members who didn’t take the vote are freshmen or second-term members and were not in Congress at the time of the vote.
The following table lists the top 20 Republican House Districts with IRA-driven growth nationwide:
While most Republicans have remained silent about protecting the IRA, some Republicans have voiced support several programs within the broad-based bill. Many farm state Republicans, for instance, are supportive of retaining the IRA’s Clean Fuel Production Tax Credit to support ethanol and biodiesel from corn and soybeans. Many other Republicans are supportive of the Carbon Sequestration Tax Credit to support their proposed CO2 pipelines and carbon storage efforts to keep coal-fired power plants up and running. The Republican-controlled states of Iowa, South Dakota, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and Nebraska all have robust wind energy sectors.
Republican House and Senate members from these leading clean energy states will have to make a choice as Congress negotiates its budget reconciliation package over the next few weeks. Will these Republicans who represent the leading edge of the clean energy economy play hardball with Trump and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson to keep the clean energy economy rolling for their constituents? Or will they back down and cower to the clean energy deniers, leaving jobs and affordable electricity on the cutting room floor?
We’ll find out soon enough.
*E2 is a national, nonpartisan group of business leaders, investors, and professionals from every sector of the economy who advocate for smart policies that are good for the economy and good for the environment.
The Cocklebur covers rural policy and politics from a progressive point-of-view. Our work focuses on a tangled rural political reality of dishonest debate, economic and racial disparities, corporate power over our democracy, and disinformation peddled by conservative media outlets. We aim to use facts, data, and science to inform our point-of-view. We wear our complicated love/WTF relationship with rural America on our sleeve.