Analysis: Michigan to Get Over 18,000 Jobs With Build Back Better Act

Sign up for daily news updates from CleanTechnica on email. Or follow us on Google News!

Lansing, Michigan — A new NRDC analysis shows that the Build Back Better agenda, as it currently stands, has the potential to significantly accelerate clean energy investment, economic activity, and job growth in Michigan. The Senate needs to address the provisions as soon as possible to bring these climate and economic benefits to states across the country.

“The stakes are enormous. This agenda recognizes that there is tremendous economic opportunity in tackling the climate crisis,” said Derrell Slaughter, Michigan Clean Energy Advocate at NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council). “Michigan is ready to seize upon this opportunity. A healthy economy starts with healthy people, healthy communities and a healthy environment.”

Projected benefits of the Build Back Better agenda in Michigan include:

  • 14,500–18,700 local jobs created in manufacturing, building, and servicing clean energy resources.
  • 6,000–6,900 new megawatts of clean energy, enough to power 850,000–1.4 million homes every year.
  • Bonus tax incentives to invest in low-income communities throughout the state, including a large portion of northern Michigan as well as cities like Detroit and Flint, and areas impacted by closures of fossil infrastructure such as parts of Branch, Hillsdale, Muskegon and Ontonagon counties, making these communities more attractive for clean energy investment.

The full fact sheet can be seen here.

“Enacting the Build Back Better agenda is a critically-needed investment in our nation’s future,” said John Bowman, Managing Director for Government Affairs at NRDC. “Already, clean energy is the biggest job creator in our country’s energy sector, employing almost three times as many workers as the fossil fuel industry. The Build Back Better agenda offers tax incentives to further boost job creation and expand the renewable energy industry, especially in low-income communities, and support a just transition for communities that have relied on fossil fuel revenue and jobs in the past.”

Background

The House-passed Build Back Better agenda contains more than $150 billion in clean electricity tax incentives as well as more than $25 billion for clean energy loans, grants, research, procurement, and other essential programs. Tax incentives are critical to driving clean energy deployment and reducing the cost of renewables and other clean energy resources.

The tax incentives included in the legislation are flexible and accessible to support all types of developers (small and large, for-profit and not-for-profit) who will usher in the fastest—and most sustained—build-out of renewables in the country’s history. New bonus credits for projects built that meet strong labor standards, create well-paying jobs, and drive equitable access to clean energy resources.

113,456 of Michiganders worked in the clean energy sector in 2020, according to the Clean Jobs America 2021 report from E2. This includes 10,767 in renewable energy, 74,242 in energy efficiency, and 24,268 in clean vehicles. The clean energy sector in Michigan grew 3.4% percent between 2018 and 2020, and the Build Back Better agenda could accelerate that growth in the coming years.

###

NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 3 million members and online activists. Since 1970, our lawyers, scientists, and other environmental specialists have worked to protect the world’s natural resources, public health, and the environment. NRDC has offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Bozeman, MT, and Beijing. Visit us at www.nrdc.org and follow us on Twitter @NRDC. 

 


Have a tip for CleanTechnica? Want to advertise? Want to suggest a guest for our CleanTech Talk podcast? Contact us here.

Latest CleanTechnica TV Video


Advertisement
 
CleanTechnica uses affiliate links. See our policy here.

NRDC

NRDC is the nation's most effective environmental action group, combining the grassroots power of 1.3 million members and online activists with the courtroom clout and expertise of more than 350 lawyers, scientists, and other professionals.

NRDC has 392 posts and counting. See all posts by NRDC