The New Democrat Coalition, the U.S. House of Representatives’ largest Democratic caucus, “committed to pro-economic growth, pro-innovation, and fiscally responsible policies,” endorsed Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher’s (TX-07) Revive Economic Growth and Reclaim Orphaned Wells (REGROW) Act.  The bill aims to plug every documented orphan well in the country by investing $4.6 billion toward cleaning up these sites, creating tens of thousands of energy jobs for skilled oil and gas workers.

From the New Democrat Coalition’s release:

Today, the New Democrat Coalition (NDC) announced its endorsement slate of additional bills to address the existential threat of climate change and advance the Coalition’s ambitious agenda to achieve net-zero emissions by no later than 2050. This year, we have seen the effects of climate change on our health, national security, and economic prosperity up close, and the Coalition is committed to using every tool possible to transition towards a cleaner planet and economy. This slate of bills coincides with the Coalition’s work in the draft Build Back Better Act to go big on climate by maximizing emissions reductions.  

As part of this slate, the NDC endorsed fifteen bills: 

• H.R. 2682, the Outdoor Restoration Partnership Act, Rep. Jason Crow  
• H.R. 3440, the Sustainable Skies Act, Reps. Brad Schneider & Julia Brownley  
• H.R. 2721, the Clean Commute for Kids Act, Rep. Tony Cárdenas  
• H.R. 1514, the Prevent Outages With Energy Resilient Options Nationwide (POWER ON) Act, Rep. Scott Peters  
• H.R. 2678, the Interregional Transmission Planning Improvement Act, Reps. Sean Casten & Deborah Ross  
• H.R. 1485, the Open Back Better Act, Rep. Lisa Blunt-Rochester   
• H.R. 740, the Climate Resilient Transportation Infrastructure Study Act, Rep. Julia Brownley  
• H.R. 4834, the Nuclear Power Purchase Agreements Act, Reps. Elaine Luria & Scott Peters 
• H.R. 3516, the Greenhouse gas Reduction and Environmental Enhancement through New (GREEN) Ferries Act, Rep. Rick Larsen  
• H.R. 3347, the Generating Reduced Emissions by Electrifying New (GREEN) Buses Act, Reps. Rick Larsen, Derek Kilmer, and Julia Brownley  
• H.R. 2820, the Growing Climate Solutions Act, Rep. Abigail Spanberger  
• H.R. 1992, the Storing CO2 and Lowering Emissions (SCALE) Act, Rep. Marc Veasey  
• H.R. 3585, the Revive Economic Growth and Reclaim Orphaned Wells (REGROW) Act, Rep. Lizzie Fletcher  
• H.R. 1974, the Dynamic Glass Act, Rep. Steven Horsford 
• H.R. 1660, the Stop Sewage Overflow Act, Rep. Lori Trahan 

“Our coalition is dedicated to advancing robust climate solutions that also pave the way towards a more sustainable, forward-thinking economy. Today’s endorsements tackle everything from promoting energy efficiency to curbing greenhouse gas pollution to increasing clean transportation. For example, my POWER ON Act would help deploy more renewable energy in rural parts of the country and deliver clean power to Americans from coast to coast,” said NDC Vice Chair for Policy Scott Peters (CA- 52). “Each of these bills takes the significant, urgent action needed to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 and effectively confront the climate crisis.”

“New Dems are united in addressing the growing and existential threat of climate change to protect our planet, communities, and economy. This slate of endorsed bills furthers that priority,” said NDC Chair Suzan DelBene (WA-01). “From lowering emissions through innovative technology to investing in community resilience, these endorsed climate bills are urgent, common-sense legislation that address the climate crisis, build a sustainable clean energy economy, and ensure that future generations have a safe planet to live on.”

Earlier this year, the NDC released its First 100 Day Agenda with the priority to modernize our infrastructure, combat climate change, and create jobs, relaunched its Climate Change Task Force, and endorsed its first slate of climate change bills in the 117^th Congress. Several of the bills the Coalition has endorsed have been included in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the draft Build Back Better Act. The NDC and the Climate Change Task Force will continue to develop and advance durable policy solutions that tackle climate change, bring us towards net-zero emissions by 2050 at the latest, build our clean energy future, position the U.S. as a global leader on climate, and invest in our nation’s preparedness and resilience.