ReImagine Appalachia: 2022 Greatest Hits

By Annie Regan

Is anyone exhausted or is it just me? Seriously, as I was writing this blog about this year’s accomplishments, it hit me on how much we did this year! From putting together workshops on how to write a Letter to the Editor to passing the most historic climate bill in the history of the United States–we can indeed claim 2022 as a pretty productive year. And it didn’t start out that way: things were looking bleak when the Build Back Better Act was dead and the Fern Hollow Bridge in Pittsburgh collapsed in early February.

Maybe in the moment our Zoom webinars, action alerts, and published letters in the newspaper may have seemed like a small potatoes, but looking back they truly contributed to an outcome equivalent to a bountiful meal made with love by our Meemaw.

It’s been a year of major policy accomplishments and also relationship-building. We couldn’t be in the position where we are today without working together. Thank you all for sharing the incredible work y’all do during our biweekly Campaign Update calls, sharing our events to your networks, speaking on our panels, and calling your elected officials to make sure they remember Appalachia.

I used this quote in last year’s blog but it’s just too perfect to not use again, especially as we are preparing for our 2023 Strategy Summit (register here!).

“Remember to celebrate milestones as you prepare for the road ahead.”

-Nelson Mandela

Some quick policy highlights:

• The Inflation Reduction Act becomes law!
  • Lowering Energy Costs
    • Families that take advantage of clean energy and electric vehicle tax credits will save more than $1,000 per year.
    • $14,000 in direct consumer rebates for families to buy heat pumps or other energy efficient home appliances, saving families at least $350 per year.
    • 7.5 million more families will be able install solar on their roofs with a 30% tax credit, saving families $9,000 over the life of the system or at least $300 per year.
    • Up to $7,500 in tax credits for new electric vehicles and $4,000 for used electric vehicles, helping families save $950 per year.
    • Putting America on track to meet President Biden’s climate goals, which will save every family an average of $500 per year on their energy costs.
  • Building a Clean Energy Economy
    • Power homes, businesses, and communities with much more clean energy by 2030, including:
      • 950 million solar panels
      • 120,000 wind turbines
      • 2,300 grid-scale battery plants
    • Advance cost-saving clean energy projects at rural electric cooperatives serving 42 million people.
    • Strengthen climate resilience and protect nearly 2 million acres of national forests.
    • Creating millions of good-paying jobs making clean energy in America.
  • Reducing Harmful Pollution
    • Reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 1 gigaton in 2030, or a billion metric tons – 10 times more climate impact than any other single piece of legislation ever enacted.
    • Deploy clean energy and reduce particle pollution from fossil fuels to avoid up to 3,900 premature deaths and up to 100,000 asthma attacks annually by 2030.
  • Making the Tax Code Fairer
    • $0: how much some of largest, profitable corporations pay in federal income tax.
    • 55: the number of America’s largest, wealthiest corporations that got away without paying a cent in federal income taxes in 2020.
    • $160 billon: how much the top 1 percent of earners is estimated to evade each year in taxes.
    • 15%: the minimum tax on corporate profits the Inflation Reduction Act imposes on the largest, most profitable corporations.
    • $124 billion: savings over 10 years the Inflation Reduction Act will generate from collecting taxes already owed by wealthy people and large corporations, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
    • And no family making less than $400,000 will see their taxes go up a penny.
  • Reducing the Deficit
    • The Inflation Act will achieve hundreds of billions in deficit reduction.
    • The deficit is projected to fall by more than $1.5 trillion this year after falling by more than $350 billion last year.
    • 126 leading economists – including 7 Nobel Laureates, 2 former Treasury Secretaries, 2 former Fed Vice Chairs and 2 former CEA Chairs – have said reducing the deficit will help fight inflation and support strong, stable economic growth.

• The ReImagine Appalachia Resolution Passes at the 2022 Ohio AFL-CIO Biannual Convention

• Federal Agency Wins for Appalachian Workers
  • The Interagency Working Group on Coal & Power Plant Communities and Economic Revitalization, in partnership with the federal Department of Energy, Hosted a  Community Benefits Agreement 101 webinar- Community Benefit Agreements Toolkit here
  • Department of Interior releases Draft Guidance on funding for Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation jobs created through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL)- draft guidance found here
  • Biden-Harris Administration hosts briefing on the Talent Pipeline Challenge- fact sheet found here
  • White House Summit on the American Rescue Plan and Workforce- fact sheet found here

• The $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill included some of our priorities that we advocated for:
  • The STREAM Act! This grassroots led bill is an incredible example of what can happen when communities identify a problem – acid mine drainage – and work together to find a bipartisan solution.
    • The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) passed in 2021 contained a historic $11.3 B investment to create jobs by cleaning up abandoned mine lands from coal. Unfortunately, this incredible new funding did not allow long-term “set-aside accounts” for acid mine drainage. These “savings accounts” are essential because acid mine drainage requires permanent treatment systems with ongoing maintenance costs.
  • The RECOMPETE Act! $200 million has been allocated for this crucial bill that will help vitalize coal communities left behind. We hope to continue to work on this bill to make sure the funding formula works for rural populations.
  • Increased Funding for The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB): This important program helps protect workers by affirming legal protections for union organizing and collective bargaining. However, the NLRB lacks the funds it needs to fulfill its mission. Through the omnibus bill Congress would increase funding for this program for the first time since 2014! 

Now here’s some numbers to showcase some of our work:

Thanks for helping us ReImagine Appalachia!

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