HR6615-119

What This Bill Does

The Climate Justice Grants Act requires EPA to establish a grant program for eligible Tribal governments, local governments, and nonprofit community-based organizations to build capacity around climate justice and carry out community-driven climate projects. Applications must describe how the project will increase local understanding of climate justice issues, improve the environmental justice community ability to address those issues, facilitate collaboration among stakeholders, support proactive planning and implementation, provide a budget, list outcomes, show sustainability beyond the grant period, and demonstrate that the applicant is linked to and representative of the affected environmental justice community. Funds can support culturally and linguistically appropriate projects driven by local needs, including community partnerships, outreach and education, community solar and wind, energy efficiency, building electrification, weatherization, energy storage, solar or wind microgrids, battery electric vehicles, EV charging infrastructure, natural infrastructure, and climate-resilient infrastructure. Grants are capped at $2 million per recipient. EPA must report annually to Congress and the public on how the program helps address energy and climate justice, and the bill authorizes $1 billion for each fiscal year from 2026 through 2035, with EPA administrative expenses capped at 2 percent.

Who Benefits and How

Environmental justice communities, low-income communities, Indigenous communities, communities of color, Tribal governments, local governments, and nonprofit community-based organizations benefit from grant funding, planning capacity, and climate-project resources targeted to local priorities. Residents can benefit from cleaner energy, weatherization, resilient infrastructure, EV charging, microgrids, natural infrastructure, and community education. Local organizations benefit from resources to sustain projects beyond the grant period.

Who Bears the Burden and How

EPA must design the grant program, review applications, provide outreach and technical assistance, administer up to $1 billion per year, keep administrative expenses within the 2 percent cap, and report annually to Congress and the public. Grant recipients must prepare budgets, outcomes, sustainability plans, community-representation evidence, and culturally and linguistically appropriate projects. Federal taxpayers bear the authorization cost, and recipients must comply with EPA grant rules and reporting requirements.

Key Provisions

• Requires EPA to establish a Climate Justice Grant Program for Tribal governments, local governments, and nonprofit community-based organizations.
• Caps individual grants at $2 million and limits EPA administrative expenses to 2 percent of annual appropriations.
• Funds capacity building, collaboration, outreach, education, community solar and wind, efficiency, electrification, weatherization, storage, microgrids, electric vehicles, charging, natural infrastructure, and climate-resilient infrastructure.
• Requires applicants to show community linkage, local climate-justice benefits, budgets, outcomes, sustainability, and culturally and linguistically appropriate project design.
• Authorizes $1 billion for each fiscal year from 2026 through 2035 and requires annual public EPA reports to Congress.