Sec. 2. Findings; purposes; statement of policy
430 words·~2 min read·
/bill/115/hr/3314/ih/section-2A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
Congress finds that— from 1880 through 2015, global temperatures have increased by about 1.06 degrees Celsius; the vast majority of global warming that has occurred over the 50-year period ending on the date of enactment of this Act was due to human activities, primarily the burning of fossil fuels; emissions of greenhouse gases and atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases continue to rise, which results in a continued warming trend; global warming already has a significant impact on the economy, including the farming, fishing, forestry, and recreation industries; the significant impacts of global warming that are already occurring will be amplified by a global temperature increase, resulting in increased droughts, rising seas, mass extinctions, heat waves, desertification, wildfires, acidifying oceans, significant economic disruption, and security threats; low-income communities, communities of color, indigenous communities and other environmental justice communities in the United States are inordinately exposed to pollution from fossil fuels, and climate impacts will be disproportionately felt by those communities; the world is facing a climate emergency; people in States and local communities across the United States are engaging in and winning the fight to mobilize to solve the climate crisis; and the Federal Government has thus far failed to adequately address the climate crisis.
The purposes of this Act are— to reduce, in conjunction with other laws and policies, emissions of carbon pollution to ensure that the contribution of the United States to global climate change is lower than the level required to keep global average temperature increases below dangerous levels; to implement solutions that acknowledge the intersections of environmental degradation that perpetuate racial, social, and economic inequities; to protect the lives of low-income and disadvantaged communities and invest in those communities; to empower communities to prepare for, and react to, the impacts of climate change that are already being experienced; to demonstrate to the international community a commitment by the Federal Government to aggressively reduce carbon pollution; to create jobs for all individuals, especially in communities with high rates of unemployment or underemployment, and build a sustainable economy; and to ensure universal access to clean and renewable energy for all homes and businesses in the United States.
It is the policy of the United States that— the United States should aggressively reduce carbon pollution as rapidly as practicable, and achieve 100 percent clean and renewable energy not later than 2050; and the Federal Government should do everything in its power— to protect public health and environment; to avoid the most dangerous impacts of climate change; and to promote a rapid, just, and equitable transition to a clean energy economy.