July 31, 2020

Casten’s Illinois Sixth District and Climate Priorities Included in Appropriations Package

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Representative Sean Casten (IL-06) joined a bipartisan majority in the House to advance ten Fiscal Year 2021 (FY21) appropriations bills containing billions in investments for programs that supports Illinois Sixth District, advances clean energy and environmental protections, rejects the President's massive budget cuts, works to address the public health emergency and to stabilize the economy to put Americans on the road to recovery.

Casten said, "As we continue to face new and continuing challenges of the coronavirus pandemic, the House did our job to pass critical funding bills that support our communities and work toward rebuilding our nation. I'm proud to have voted to pass these bills that invest in climate solutions we know work and robust funding to pave the way for a clean energy future.

"One of our basic responsibilities as Representatives in Congress is to pass appropriations bills every year, Casten continued. "But when families and individuals across the country continue to struggle with unemployment, health care, and responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, I can't help feel frustrated and disappointed by the Senate majority's inaction. I hope my colleagues in the Senate will join us in quickly advancing these bills. The American people don't need to add an avoidable government shutdown on top of the already challenging year we've all experienced."

Some of Congressman Casten's climate priorities include:

  • $2.85 billion for Department of Energy's Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) program to advance research to advance a transition to a clean and affordable energy economy
  • $435 million for the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA-E) to promote research and development of advanced energy technologies
  • $500 million for a contribution or grant to an international fund to support developing nations in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Including $139.6 million for the Global Environment Facility and $179 million of bilateral funding for renewable energy programs
  • $7.05 billion for the Office of Science, funding basic science research to secure the nation's global leadership in energy innovation

Congressman Casten is a member of the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis and has made addressing climate change one of his top priorities in Congress. Casten testified to the House Appropriations Committee in June urging investment in fighting climate change in the FY21 spending bills. The Trump Administration's FY21 budget requested significant cuts to climate science and Casten cited the need to invest in energy efficiency and clean energy. The full release and transcript of Casten's remarks and recording of the testimony can be found here.

In addition to Casten's climate priorities, several Illinois Sixth District priorities were included in the FY21 appropriations packages:

  • $40 million for Urban and Community Forestry program, which provides critical assistance to public-private partnerships – like the Community Trees Program partnership with Morton Arboretum – that address regional climate change challenges. The Trump Administration zeroed out in this program in his budget request
  • $104 million for compliance, monitoring, and enforcement activities by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and directs the EPA to study and engage with communities concerned about prolonged ethylene oxide exposure
  • $12.9 million to study polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) chemical exposure and designating PFAS chemicals as hazardous substances
  • $10.8 billion for Head Start; $5.9 billion for Child Care and Development Block Grants; and $300 million for Preschool Development Grants
  • $525 million for Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) programs
  • Nearly $100 billion for food assistance programs including Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Child Nutrition, and Woman, Infants, and Children (WIC)
  • $10.018 billion in emergency funding for COVID-19 preparedness, response, and relief globally and requires the Trump administration to provide funding to the World Health Organization (WHO)
  • $8 billion for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as well as $9 billion in emergency funds to improve preparedness for public health emergencies
  • Over $100 billion for the Department of Veteran Affairs, including $12.5 billion in emergency funding to address the rising costs of veterans' health care
  • Report language directing agencies responsible for COVID-19 vaccine development to include demographic data on COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial participants to ensure the vaccine is safe and effective for the entire U.S. population. In June, Casten lead a letter with 55 colleagues in the House calling on the agencies to report and collect sex, race, and ethnicity data

The FY21 appropriations bills are currently awaiting consideration in the Senate.