Our Accomplishments
Our Accomplishments
Behind our accomplishments are 200,000+ grassroots volunteers: organized, persistent and ready to roll đź’Ą
We're helping Congress feel the heat for climate action. 🔥
America has made some big climate commitments on the world stage. We’ve promised to cut our carbon pollution 50% by 2030. CCL is holding Congress accountable to that promise.Â
Our volunteers meet regularly with their members of Congress, both Republicans and Democrats, to ask them to take action on climate change and support specific solutions that will make a meaningful difference.
During the 118th Congress, our volunteers have been responsible for:
182,781calls and messages to Congress
2,107meetings with Congress
3,259local media hits about climate action
Our strategic outreach and direct lobbying is helping move important climate legislation through Congress right now:
The PROVE IT Act would direct the Department of Energy to measure the carbon intensity of certain goods produced at home and abroad, helping America negotiate effectively with trading partners who have carbon tariffs in place.
Just days before CCL’s 2023 Summer Conference, on June 7, 2023, a bipartisan group of Senators introduced the PROVE IT Act in the Senate. Since the introduction came just before our 2023 Lobby Day, many of our 436 meetings on Capitol Hill included discussions of the bill, and our volunteers continued to mobilize around it during the rest of 2023.
In January 2024, we generated a targeted slate of calls to Senate EPW Committee members, helping support the bill to committee passage with a vote of 14-5 — that’s even more bipartisan support than expected.
CCL volunteers continued to reach out to Congress in support of the bill throughout the first half of 2024, culminating in the PROVE IT Act as a primary ask in our 2024 Lobby Day meetings. Just weeks after those 442 meetings on Capitol Hill, and supported by 1,870 calls from volunteers nationwide, a bipartisan group of representatives introduced the bill into the House.Â
We continue to build bipartisan support for the legislation.
The Energy Permitting Reform Act of 2024 is a comprehensive package of permitting reform measures which will result in a significant net decrease in carbon pollution. Notably, it includes the core components of the BIG WIRES Act, which CCL volunteers actively supported in 2023.
CCL began engaging in the area of clean energy permitting reform at the beginning of the 118th Congress in January 2023, generating tens of thousands of messages urging Congress to work together in this area. Most recently, at our 2024 Lobby Day, one of our primary asks for our 442 citizen lobby meetings with congressional offices was to put forth a bipartisan package of clean energy permitting reform policies. Weeks later, a bipartisan pair of senators introduced this legislation, which is backed by a diverse coalition of clean energy experts and climate leaders.
The bill was quickly put on the agenda of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee for quick action just a week after introduction. CCL volunteers in states with senators on the committee sprang into action, generating more than 500 calls to committee members. The bill passed the committee with a bipartisan vote of 15-4.
We continue to build bipartisan support for the legislation.
The Seedlings for Sustainable Habitat Restoration Act would support the development of seedling nurseries to improve and expand reforestation efforts. The legislation was a secondary ask at our 2023 Lobby Day on Capitol Hill, and CCL volunteers raised it in many of our 436 lobby meetings.
In March of 2024, the bill passed the House Committee on Natural Resources. In our 2024 Lobby Day, the bill was again a secondary ask, raised in many of our 442 lobby meetings. In the weeks after this year’s lobbying, the bill gained seven bipartisan cosponsors in the House.
We continue to build bipartisan support for the legislation.
The Increased Technical Service Provider (“TSP”) Access Act deals with helping agricultural producers, like farmers, to fully utilize current conservation and climate programs.
CCL has supported this legislation since its initial introduction in the Senate in April of 2023. CCL volunteers began mobilizing around the bill in August 2023, sending 12,339 messages to lawmakers in support that month. CCL volunteers discussed this legislation as a secondary ask in December of 2023, when we held approximately 280 virtual citizen lobby meetings with Congress.
In March of 2024, CCL’s conservative volunteers lobbied on the bill in 47 meetings during our Conservative Climate Leadership Conference & Lobby Day, and successfully encouraged a conservative Republican Senator to sign on in support. The legislation was also a secondary ask at our 2024 Lobby Day in June 2024, where the bill was mentioned in many of our 442 meetings on Capitol Hill.
Since our summer lobbying, the bill has gained nine new bipartisan cosponsors in the House.
We continue to build bipartisan support for the legislation.
We’re continuing to advocate in our communities and with Congress to advance these policies — and our track record of success speaks for itself.
Bipartisan Climate Wins 🙌
We LOVE bipartisanship. In fact, we love it so much that we helped form the Climate Solutions Caucuses in both the House and Senate. The caucuses give both parties a chance to get together to discuss climate issues and lay the groundwork for potential new policies.
Our amazing volunteers have continuously worked to pass national climate bills with bipartisan support over the years. The following bills were signed into law or passed through at least one chamber of Congress.
The Accelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy Act, or the ADVANCE Act, is a bill to streamline the permitting process for new nuclear projects. The House version of the legislation, the Atomic Energy Advancement Act, passed the House on Feb. 28, 2024 and then sent over to the Senate. CCL’s conservative volunteers advocated for the bill in 47 citizen lobby meetings held in March 2024, as part of a larger push for bipartisan clean energy permitting reform. The text of the ADVANCE Act was later added to the Fire Grants and Safety Act (S.870), which passed the Senate on June 18, 2024 with a 88-2 vote. President Biden signed it into law on July 9, 2024.
The Growing Climate Solutions Act strengthened and improved access to voluntary carbon credits for farmers, ranchers, and private forest owners. CCL signed onto its supporter list when the bill was introduced in June 2021. That same month, 300+ constituent-led lobby meetings led to the recruitment of over 40 new co-sponsors. In the week before the Senate vote, CCL made 10,500 constituent contacts to the Senate and published at least 15 op-eds. The bill passed the Senate on a vote of 92-8. When this bill stalled in the House committee, our government affairs and grassroots network continued to build momentum for it in the House via media, calls, and constituent-led lobby meetings. Finally, the bill was included in the 2022 Omnibus package.
The Hope for Homes Act cuts costs for homeowners while investing in clean energy jobs and technology. We supported this bipartisan bill with several hundred constituent-led lobby meetings in June 2021, which passed the House in 2021. Key provisions were later included in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.
The SCALE Act was created to help develop carbon capture and storage (CCS) infrastructure as a way of reducing carbon dioxide emissions while creating regional economic opportunities and jobs. CCL contributed to coalition letters that laid out desired climate measures, mobilized constituents in Republican-led districts to support this legislation, and grew the co-sponsorship list over two years. This bill was a supporting ask during 350 constituent lobby meetings of June 2021. It was included in the bipartisan infrastructure law passed by both chambers of Congress in November 2021, and signed into law on Nov. 15, 2021.Â
The USE IT Act boosts carbon capture technologies with $85 million of funding and a permitting task force. CCL volunteers had lobbied on this legislation since June of 2019, and it gained cosponsors after each of our lobbying pushes. Just before heading home for the 2020 holidays, the U.S. House and Senate passed a massive omnibus package. The package was one of “the most significant energy legislation in more than a dozen years,” according to Politico.
The Better Energy Storage and Technology (BEST) Act authorized $300 million for research and development of grid-scale energy storage systems, and authorized demonstration projects for these new energy storage technologies. This technology is essential for the deployment of wind and solar energy. In July of 2020, CCL volunteers helped add at least 24 new cosponsors onto the Better Energy Storage and Technology (BEST) Act in just one week. The BEST Act was ultimately included in the omnibus package passed by the House and Senate at the end of 2020.
The Climate Ready Fisheries Act required a report to be prepared outlining efforts to adapt our nation’s fisheries to the impacts of climate change. CCL helped recruit 10 new-co-sponsors after our 2020 June lobby day, and it was included in the 2020 omnibus package.
The Revitalizing the Economy of Coal Communities by Leveraging Local Activities and Investing More (RECLAIM) Act (H.R. 2156) would have fast-tracked $1 billion in funding to clean up abandoned coal mines and create thousands of jobs in the process. CCL volunteers supported this legislation as a secondary request in lobby meetings from June 2019-July 2020. It accumulated 65 co-sponsors, including 14 Republicans in that time. As part of a broad coalition, CCL brought this request to the Hill at the June 2020 lobby day, and it was included in the Democratic House version of the Infrastructure bill shortly thereafter. It was not taken up in the Senate.
CCL is a trusted partner in Congress
Progress Beyond Policy
We’re proud of how we’re moving the needle on climate policy in Congress. But our work doesn’t stop there! We’re constantly growing our grassroots network and educating our communities. Here’s a peek at some recent accomplishments that go beyond the climate bills.
A nationwide wave of climate advocates
Each summer, CCL volunteers come from every state in the country to meet with Congress on Capitol Hill. At our 2024 event, 991 volunteers held 442 citizen lobby meetings with congressional offices. Included in that group were 195 students and 219 people of color or political conservatives.
25,000 climate conversations
In April 2024, we launched a new outreach campaign based on the communication expertise of Potential Energy Coalition and Science Moms. Volunteers held more than 25,000 conversations about climate change — and counting!
Electrification education
In August 2024, we set out to educate our communities about cutting edge clean tech upgrades for their homes. From heat pumps and induction stoves to solar panels and electric vehicles, we’re spreading the word and helping folks save money along the way.
In 2022, we lobbied for the biggest climate bill in U.S. history 🇺🇸
We had our biggest win yet when Congress took a huge step forward on climate change by passing the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), signed into law in 2022.
The Inflation Reduction Act was a result of the budget reconciliation process in Congress, where only a simple majority of the Senate needed to vote “yes” to pass a series of budget-related policies. CCLers began pushing for big climate policies in 2021 when Congress began this process. The persistent work of CCLers over 18 months paved the way for the official Inflation Reduction Act bill, formally introduced in July 2022.
The Inflation Reduction Act is the biggest climate bill in American history. It combines investments, fees and tax credits to increase the speed at which America adopts clean energy and electric vehicles, providing major wins for the climate, Americans, and cities and towns across the country. These policies are the result of months of compromises among lawmakers.
If any volunteers can claim a hand in the passage of this bill, it’s CCLers. From August 2021 to August 2022, our volunteers:
Made 168,000 calls and emailsto Congress and President Biden
Reached 4.5 million peoplein targeted states through text and phone banking
Published 1,300 letters to the editor & op-edsin local media across the country
Thanks in large part to these efforts, America is set to cut its carbon emissions 40% by 2030. The Inflation Reduction Act doesn’t get all the way to the official goal of 50% reduction by 2030, but it gets the ball within striking distance 🎯
In the years since the IRA’s passage, CCL volunteers have advocated for clean energy permitting reform to ensure that America can build and connect enough clean energy to fully realize the potential emissions reductions from the IRA. CCL volunteers are also hard at work educating their communities about the clean energy rebates and tax credits available to Americans, encouraging folks in their communities to take advantage of these programs and speed the transition to a clean energy economy.
We’re implementing climate policy state by state (times 50 🇺🇸)
Our U.S. chapters make waves at the state and local levels in support of clean energy and decarbonization. Over the past five years, our volunteers have successfully lobbied for the following state-level legislation.
CCLers help pass ambitious climate legislation in New York state
The Climate Leadership and Communities Protections Act (2019) commits to 100% clean energy by 2040, and an 85% emissions reduction by 2050 in New York state.
Maryland passes major renewable energy bill
The Clean Energy Jobs Act (2019) requires Maryland to get at least half of its energy from renewable sources by 2030 with a goal of 100% by 2040.
Colorado passes major decarbonization law
The Climate Action Plan (2019) is set to cut carbon pollution at least 26% by 2025, 50% by 2030, and 90% by 2050 compared to 2005 levels. The law works to decarbonize Colorado’s economy with a roadmap that includes a transition to renewable energy and reduction in methane pollution
D.C. passes strong clean energy bill with price on carbon
After a multi-year, grassroots-led campaign, the Washington, D.C., City Council passed The Clean Energy D.C. Act of 2018. The law is concrete, binding, and specific, set to reduce the city’s emissions 44% by 2032 by putting a small price on carbon.
Other notable accomplishments
Passed
Massachusetts – Next-Generation Roadmap for Massachusetts Climate Policy (2021)
Proposed
Utah – HJR3 and SB187 to enact a carbon fee and dividend (2021)
Hawaii – SB 3150 to enact a carbon price (2021)
