Menu
America is at an inflection point. A new president will be sworn in next year, power in Congress hangs in the balance, and recent Supreme Court decisions present new obstacles to climate action. At the same time, disasters driven by our changing climate continue to devastate our communities. In 2023 alone, the United States experienced 28 billion-dollar weather and climate disasters. For perspective, in the 1980s the country averaged just over three events per year of this scale.
Fortunately, the U.S. Climate Alliance is built to lead in challenging and uncertain times. In fact, our bipartisan climate action coalition of 24 U.S. governors got its start seven years ago when then-President Trump yanked the United States out of the Paris Agreement.
In those early years, despite significant headwinds, the Alliance fiercely and steadfastly protected our progress and kept our country on track. Together, we backstopped federal environmental rules. We defended against challenges to critical state climate policies and regulations. And we filled the void on the international stage.
All of this work laid the foundation for the historic partnership we’ve forged with the Biden-Harris administration to slash climate pollution over the past few years. As you’ll read in the pages that follow, this surge of investment, collaboration, and action is transforming how we generate and save energy, construct our homes and buildings, move around in our communities, manage and preserve land, and so much more. The result is better health, more jobs, and a stronger economy for the American people.
This report details this progress across our coalition over the past year – and provides dozens of examples of how our member states and territories are raising ambition and advancing the most impactful climate solutions. It also shows how these solutions are being shared and scaled across the Alliance. This includes our recent launch of the Governors’ Climate-Ready Workforce Initiative, in which our states and territories committed to collectively training 1 million new workers through registered apprenticeship programs by 2035.
We know we still have a steep hill to climb, but what we’re doing is working. Just look at the numbers. Between 2005 and 2022 (the latest year with complete data), the Alliance reduced its collective net greenhouse gas emissions by 19 percent, continuing the coalition’s trend of declining emissions over 15 years. Over the past three years, the pace with which Alliance members have been able to advance climate solutions nearly doubled compared to our first three years. And we continue to see record-breaking investments in the manufacture, purchase, and deployment of clean energy and clean technologies. In 2023, these investments jumped 32 percent from the previous year, reaching more than $119 billion across Alliance states and delivering direct economic benefits for local communities.
All of this comes as the Alliance is being led by two women co-chairs for the very first time.
We hope you draw the same strength and resolve we do from the progress we’ve made and our unwavering commitment to keep America moving forward. Together, no matter the obstacles, we’ll confront the climate crisis and build a brighter future. There’s no turning back.
