‘Stealing money from their own communities’: House Dems blast GOP’s climate spending cuts fixating on the Biden era

House Democrats are strongly opposing Republican efforts to drastically reduce billions in clean energy and environmental programs that were created under the Biden administration. The Republicans’ wide-ranging bill, which is moving through Congress with support only from their own party, calls for major cuts across multiple committees.

The main focus of Democratic opposition is the Republican plan to undo important parts of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). The House Energy and Commerce Committee is where much of this fight is happening; Eenews reported Co-chair of the House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition Rep. Doris Matsui (D-Calif.) said, “Republicans are stealing money from their own communities.”

Politico reported that the Republican proposal in this committee includes canceling funding for various climate programs and speeding up approval for natural gas projects. Democrats are also pointing out cases where Republicans are now fighting against IRA subsidies that they once supported or even benefited from.

Democrats and republicans clash over the energy bill

The changes suggested by the Ways and Means Committee are making the conflict even worse. Republicans want to remove or gradually end several valuable tax credits from the IRA, including those for people buying electric vehicles (EVs) and for homeowners making energy-saving improvements. The bill also goes after subsidies for wind, solar, and other renewable energy sources, planning to phase them out by 2031.

At the same time, tax credits that Republicans prefer, such as those for carbon capture and sustainable aviation fuel, would mostly stay in place. Another controversial part of the bill is the removal of “transferability,” a rule that lets developers sell tax credits to raise money for projects. Republicans say these changes are needed to be financially responsible, claiming some programs are wasteful and not effective.

Beyond clean energy, the Republican bill is also causing strong pushback over its effects on healthcare. The Energy and Commerce Committee’s plan to change Medicaid, including adding work requirements, is expected to save a lot of money. But Democrats warn it would cause millions to lose coverage and sharply increase the number of uninsured people.

The proposed rules would make work requirements stricter for Medicaid recipients, which could hurt people who already have jobs but struggle with paperwork. It may not go all the way through, as it wouldn’t be the first time Republicans broke ranks. In fact, the energy tax bill saw Republicans turn on each other.

Democrats are also worried about a plan to stop states from creating new taxes to help fund Medicaid. Republicans, however, argue these changes are needed to reduce waste, fraud, and abuse in the system. The bill is also causing disagreements among Republicans themselves, with some members wanting stricter Medicaid work requirements than others. Another issue causing tension is the state and local tax (SALT) deduction, as some Republicans want bigger increases than others.

The Agriculture Committee is also facing cuts under the Republican plan. Republicans are pushing for big spending reductions in the country’s largest food assistance program, saying it is necessary to control spending. Democrats, however, strongly disagree, warning that these cuts would hurt people who rely on the program.