PennFuture Responds to President Biden's 'American Jobs Plan'

“PennFuture has been working for more than two decades to hasten the transition to a sustainable, clean energy economy in Pennsylvania, and President Biden’s American Jobs Plan will do more to accomplish this goal than any effort before it. The President’s proposal will supercharge the transition with historic public investments that put communities and workers first,” said PennFuture President and CEO Jacquelyn Bonomo. “It’s more than appropriate that the President unveiled this historic and ambitious plan in Pittsburgh, as Appalachia—whose past is grounded in grit, determination and innovation—is now poised and ready to be cast as the seat of America’s green economy.

Biden’s plan gets it right by leading with ambition, scale and vision that will go a long way for Pennsylvania’s economy and environmental future: $16 billion to put hundreds of thousands to work in union jobs plugging oil and gas wells and restoring and reclaiming abandoned mines, $174 billion to bolster our nation’s Electric Vehicle industry and infrastructure, $111 billion to rebuild our water infrastructure, $10 billion to create a new Civilian Climate Corps, and a commitment to ensuring every dollar of federal infrastructure investment improves our resilience to severe storms and climate change. These are investments in our people, our land, our climate and our environment at a time when we need it most.

Finally, we applaud the President for not only acknowledging communities across the nation that have been systematically excluded from the American Dream, but doing something about it. This plan calls for an influx of millions of good, family sustaining jobs across the nation, as well as significant investments in infrastructure and projects that will help reduce pollution and positively impact the health of rural and urban Americans alike who have struggled for years with water pollution.

Simply put, the American Jobs Plan will reimagine and rebuild the nation’s economy in a way that’s been spelled out previously in plans like PennFuture’s Green Stimulus plan, Reimagine Appalachia’s blueprint, and the Marshall Plan for Middle America. It will tackle climate change with the vigor, intent and immediacy needed to avert the worst impacts of the crisis, and it will lay the foundation for America’s much-needed transition to a green energy economy.

The president has illuminated the path forward for a better, more equitable Pennsylvania, and America, and we are committed to helping advance the American Jobs Plan in any way we can.”

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PennFuture is leading the transition to a clean energy economy in Pennsylvania, fighting big polluters with legal muscle, enforcing environmental laws, and supporting legislative policy that protects public health. PennFuture is engaging and educating citizens about the realities of climate change, and giving them the tools needed to influence lawmakers on the issues. Visit www.pennfuture.org for more information.

Contact:
Jared Stonesifer
Director of Media Relations
stonesifer@pennfuture.org
412.456.2372