128-731: The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act ( IIJA ), also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law ( BIL ), ( H.R. 3684 ) is a United States federal statute enacted by the 117th United States Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden on November 15, 2021. It was introduced in the House as the INVEST in America Act and nicknamed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill. The act
256-673: A slip law and in the United States Statutes at Large after receiving the act. Thereafter, the changes are published in the United States Code . Through the process of judicial review , an act of Congress that violates the Constitution may be declared unconstitutional by the courts. A judicial declaration that an act of Congress is unconstitutional does not remove the act from the Statutes at Large or
384-660: A $ 100 discount on tablets, laptops and desktops for them. The program ran out of funds on April 30, 2024. The law also requires the FCC to return consumer broadband labels it developed in 2016 to statute, to revise its public comment process and to issue rules and model policies for combating digital deployment discrimination, with the United States Attorney General 's cooperation, and the Government Accountability Office to deliver
512-523: A $ 547 billion plan, called the INVEST in America Act, which would address parts of the American Jobs Plan. On July 1, the House passed an amended $ 715 billion infrastructure bill focused on land transportation and water. On May 27, Republican senator Shelley Moore Capito presented a $ 928 billion plan, and on June 4, increased it by about $ 50 billion; this was quickly rejected by
640-505: A breath-based and a touch-based sensor that stops the car if the driver is above the legal blood alcohol content , and will be open-sourced to automobile manufacturers. Under the law, the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) will be required to develop regulations for a system that can detect distracted, fatigued, or impaired drivers. The NHTSA has recommended implementing a camera-based warning system for
768-628: A broad remit over transportation research akin to DARPA , HSARPA , IARPA , ARPA-E , and ARPA-H , with the first appropriations of $ 3.22 million being made in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 . Lastly, it broadens the powers of the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council, to provide faster conflict resolution among agencies, in speeding up infrastructure design approvals. An October 2021 report written by
896-562: A broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to Earth's climate. The current rise in global temperatures is driven by human activities , especially fossil fuel burning since the Industrial Revolution . Fossil fuel use, deforestation , and some agricultural and industrial practices release greenhouse gases . These gases absorb some of the heat that the Earth radiates after it warms from sunlight , warming
1024-417: A deal caused a late September House vote to be postponed. On October 2, Pelosi set a new deadline of October 31. By October 28, Jayapal and other progressive leaders indicated that they were willing to vote on the bill separately, but Sanders and others opposed this. On October 31, a majority of progressives signaled that they would support both bills. Votes on both bills were considered on November 5, but
1152-590: A decadal timescale. Other changes are caused by an imbalance of energy from external forcings . Examples of these include changes in the concentrations of greenhouse gases , solar luminosity , volcanic eruptions, and variations in the Earth's orbit around the Sun. To determine the human contribution to climate change, unique "fingerprints" for all potential causes are developed and compared with both observed patterns and known internal climate variability . For example, solar forcing—whose fingerprint involves warming
1280-542: A lot of light to being dark after the ice has melted, they start absorbing more heat . Local black carbon deposits on snow and ice also contribute to Arctic warming. Arctic surface temperatures are increasing between three and four times faster than in the rest of the world. Melting of ice sheets near the poles weakens both the Atlantic and the Antarctic limb of thermohaline circulation , which further changes
1408-412: A marked increase in temperature. Ongoing changes in climate have had no precedent for several thousand years. Multiple independent datasets all show worldwide increases in surface temperature, at a rate of around 0.2 °C per decade. The 2014–2023 decade warmed to an average 1.19 °C [1.06–1.30 °C] compared to the pre-industrial baseline (1850–1900). Not every single year was warmer than
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#17327875756751536-508: A new Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) office specializing in cybersecurity . The infrastructure law created the Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program with $ 350 million in funding over five years. This is a competitive grant program that funds planning and construction projects that prevent wildlife-vehicle collisions and improve the connectivity of animal habitats. The law also allocated $ 1 billion to create
1664-577: A new All Stations Accessibility Program (ASAP). This program is designed to improve the accessibility of rail system stations that were built before the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). At the time of the infrastructure law's passage, over 900 transit stations were not fully ADA-compliant. The law includes $ 1 billion over five years for Reconnecting Communities planning and construction grants intended to build marginalized community-recommended projects removing or capping highways and railroads,
1792-408: A physical climate model. These models simulate how population, economic growth , and energy use affect—and interact with—the physical climate. With this information, these models can produce scenarios of future greenhouse gas emissions. This is then used as input for physical climate models and carbon cycle models to predict how atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases might change. Depending on
1920-562: A reconciliation bill costing $ 3.5 trillion, breaking the stalemate and allowing the bipartisan bill to move forward. That day, the Senate voted 67–32 to advance the bill, and on July 30, voted 66–28 to proceed to its consideration. The legislation text was completed and substituted into the bill on August 1. On August 5, Schumer moved to truncate debate on the legislation, setting up a procedural vote on August 7, which passed 67–27. Fifteen or more amendments were expected to receive votes through
2048-527: A report on updating broadband thresholds by November 2022. To support safe drinking water programs, the law provides: For surface water programs, such as watershed management and pollution control , the law provides: The Act provides $ 8 billion for helping Western states deal with the Southwestern North American megadrought . Spending for many related projects is included under the category "Western Water Infrastructure". Prior to
2176-461: A result of climate change. Global sea level is rising as a consequence of thermal expansion and the melting of glaciers and ice sheets . Sea level rise has increased over time, reaching 4.8 cm per decade between 2014 and 2023. Over the 21st century, the IPCC projects 32–62 cm of sea level rise under a low emission scenario, 44–76 cm under an intermediate one and 65–101 cm under
2304-474: A result. The World Health Organization calls climate change one of the biggest threats to global health in the 21st century. Societies and ecosystems will experience more severe risks without action to limit warming . Adapting to climate change through efforts like flood control measures or drought-resistant crops partially reduces climate change risks, although some limits to adaptation have already been reached. Poorer communities are responsible for
2432-417: A small share of global emissions , yet have the least ability to adapt and are most vulnerable to climate change . Many climate change impacts have been observed in the first decades of the 21st century, with 2023 the warmest on record at +1.48 °C (2.66 °F) since regular tracking began in 1850. Additional warming will increase these impacts and can trigger tipping points , such as melting all of
2560-581: A total of $ 65 billion in advancing the U.S. quest for broadband universal service . Of this $ 65 billion, the law invests $ 42.45 billion in a new infrastructure grant program by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration called the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program , with highest priority going to communities with Internet speeds below 25 downstream and 3 upstream Mbps . $ 2 billion will go to
2688-548: A very high emission scenario. Marine ice sheet instability processes in Antarctica may add substantially to these values, including the possibility of a 2-meter sea level rise by 2100 under high emissions. Climate change has led to decades of shrinking and thinning of the Arctic sea ice . While ice-free summers are expected to be rare at 1.5 °C degrees of warming, they are set to occur once every three to ten years at
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#17327875756752816-519: A warming level of 2 °C. Higher atmospheric CO 2 concentrations cause more CO 2 to dissolve in the oceans, which is making them more acidic . Because oxygen is less soluble in warmer water, its concentrations in the ocean are decreasing , and dead zones are expanding. Greater degrees of global warming increase the risk of passing through ' tipping points '—thresholds beyond which certain major impacts can no longer be avoided even if temperatures return to their previous state. For instance,
2944-563: Is a statute enacted by the United States Congress . Acts may apply only to individual entities (called private laws ), or to the general public ( public laws ). For a bill to become an act, the text must pass through both houses with a majority, then be either signed into law by the president of the United States , be left unsigned for ten days (excluding Sundays) while Congress remains in session, or, if vetoed by
3072-564: Is an estimated total sea level rise of 2.3 metres per degree Celsius (4.2 ft/°F) after 2000 years. Oceanic CO 2 uptake is slow enough that ocean acidification will also continue for hundreds to thousands of years. Deep oceans (below 2,000 metres (6,600 ft)) are also already committed to losing over 10% of their dissolved oxygen by the warming which occurred to date. Further, the West Antarctic ice sheet appears committed to practically irreversible melting, which would increase
3200-711: Is determined by modelling the carbon cycle and climate sensitivity to greenhouse gases. According to UNEP , global warming can be kept below 1.5 °C with a 50% chance if emissions after 2023 do not exceed 200 gigatonnes of CO 2 . This corresponds to around 4 years of current emissions. To stay under 2.0 °C, the carbon budget is 900 gigatonnes of CO 2 , or 16 years of current emissions. The climate system experiences various cycles on its own which can last for years, decades or even centuries. For example, El Niño events cause short-term spikes in surface temperature while La Niña events cause short term cooling. Their relative frequency can affect global temperature trends on
3328-421: Is guaranteed a minimum of $ 45 million per year from this program. At least 15% of each state's funds must be spent on off-system bridges (i.e., public bridges that are not on federal-aid highways), and 3% is set aside each year for bridges on tribal lands. Off-system and tribal bridge projects may be funded with a 100% federal share (as opposed to the standard 80% federal share). With $ 12.5 billion over five years,
3456-595: Is implemented through the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail program, which will receive $ 36 billion in advance appropriations and $ 7.5 billion in fully authorized funds. The Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements program will receive $ 5 billion in advance appropriations and $ 5 billion in fully authorized funds, while programs for grade separation replacing level crossings will receive $ 3 billion in advance appropriations and $ 2.5 billion in fully authorized funds, and
3584-399: Is independent of where greenhouse gases are emitted, because the gases persist long enough to diffuse across the planet. Since the pre-industrial period, the average surface temperature over land regions has increased almost twice as fast as the global average surface temperature. This is because oceans lose more heat by evaporation and oceans can store a lot of heat . The thermal energy in
3712-580: Is made by the third method, the presiding officer of the house that last reconsidered the act promulgates it. Under the United States Constitution , if the president does not return a bill or resolution to Congress with objections before the time limit expires, then the bill automatically becomes an act; however, if the Congress is adjourned at the end of this period, then the bill dies and cannot be reconsidered (see pocket veto ). If
3840-450: Is primarily attributed to sulfate aerosols produced by the combustion of fossil fuels with heavy sulfur concentrations like coal and bunker fuel . Smaller contributions come from black carbon (from combustion of fossil fuels and biomass), and from dust. Globally, aerosols have been declining since 1990 due to pollution controls, meaning that they no longer mask greenhouse gas warming as much. Aerosols also have indirect effects on
3968-444: Is radiating into space. Warming reduces average snow cover and forces the retreat of glaciers . At the same time, warming also causes greater evaporation from the oceans , leading to more atmospheric humidity , more and heavier precipitation . Plants are flowering earlier in spring, and thousands of animal species have been permanently moving to cooler areas. Different regions of the world warm at different rates . The pattern
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4096-516: Is shaped by feedbacks, which either amplify or dampen the change. Self-reinforcing or positive feedbacks increase the response, while balancing or negative feedbacks reduce it. The main reinforcing feedbacks are the water-vapour feedback , the ice–albedo feedback , and the net effect of clouds. The primary balancing mechanism is radiative cooling , as Earth's surface gives off more heat to space in response to rising temperature. In addition to temperature feedbacks, there are feedbacks in
4224-410: Is sometimes used in informal speech to indicate something for which getting permission is burdensome. For example, "It takes an act of Congress to get a building permit in this town." An act adopted by simple majorities in both houses of Congress is promulgated , or given the force of law, in one of the following ways: The president promulgates acts of Congress made by the first two methods. If an act
4352-407: Is the major reason why different climate models project different magnitudes of warming for a given amount of emissions. A climate model is a representation of the physical, chemical and biological processes that affect the climate system. Models include natural processes like changes in the Earth's orbit, historical changes in the Sun's activity, and volcanic forcing. Models are used to estimate
4480-417: Is unclear. A related phenomenon driven by climate change is woody plant encroachment , affecting up to 500 million hectares globally. Climate change has contributed to the expansion of drier climate zones, such as the expansion of deserts in the subtropics . The size and speed of global warming is making abrupt changes in ecosystems more likely. Overall, it is expected that climate change will result in
4608-598: The American Families Plan , amounted to $ 4 trillion in infrastructure spending), pitched by him as "a transformative effort to overhaul the nation's economy". The detailed plan aimed to create millions of jobs, bolster labor unions , expand labor protections, and address climate change . In mid-April 2021, Republican lawmakers offered a $ 568 billion counterproposal to the American Jobs Plan. On May 9, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said it should cost no more than $ 800 billion. On May 21,
4736-511: The Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC), and irreversible damage to key ecosystems like the Amazon rainforest and coral reefs can unfold in a matter of decades. The long-term effects of climate change on oceans include further ice melt, ocean warming , sea level rise, ocean acidification and ocean deoxygenation. The timescale of long-term impacts are centuries to millennia due to CO 2 's long atmospheric lifetime. The result
4864-661: The Earth's energy budget . Sulfate aerosols act as cloud condensation nuclei and lead to clouds that have more and smaller cloud droplets. These clouds reflect solar radiation more efficiently than clouds with fewer and larger droplets. They also reduce the growth of raindrops , which makes clouds more reflective to incoming sunlight. Indirect effects of aerosols are the largest uncertainty in radiative forcing . While aerosols typically limit global warming by reflecting sunlight, black carbon in soot that falls on snow or ice can contribute to global warming. Not only does this increase
4992-573: The Greenland ice sheet is already melting, but if global warming reaches levels between 1.7 °C and 2.3 °C, its melting will continue until it fully disappears. If the warming is later reduced to 1.5 °C or less, it will still lose a lot more ice than if the warming was never allowed to reach the threshold in the first place. While the ice sheets would melt over millennia, other tipping points would occur faster and give societies less time to respond. The collapse of major ocean currents like
5120-840: The Greenland ice sheet . Under the 2015 Paris Agreement , nations collectively agreed to keep warming "well under 2 °C". However, with pledges made under the Agreement, global warming would still reach about 2.8 °C (5.0 °F) by the end of the century. Limiting warming to 1.5 °C would require halving emissions by 2030 and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. Fossil fuel use can be phased out by conserving energy and switching to energy sources that do not produce significant carbon pollution. These energy sources include wind , solar , hydro , and nuclear power . Cleanly generated electricity can replace fossil fuels for powering transportation , heating buildings , and running industrial processes. Carbon can also be removed from
5248-635: The Industrial Revolution , naturally-occurring amounts of greenhouse gases caused the air near the surface to be about 33 °C warmer than it would have been in their absence. Human activity since the Industrial Revolution, mainly extracting and burning fossil fuels ( coal , oil , and natural gas ), has increased the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. In 2022, the concentrations of CO 2 and methane had increased by about 50% and 164%, respectively, since 1750. These CO 2 levels are higher than they have been at any time during
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5376-664: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to develop a safety mechanism to prevent drunk driving , which causes about 10,000 deaths each year in the United States as of 2021, which will be rolled out in phases for retroactive fitting, and will become mandatory for all new vehicles in 2027. The technology, which is being developed by NHTSA in cooperation with the Automotive Coalition for Traffic Safety and Swedish automobile safety company Autoliv , consists of
5504-701: The USDA $ 5.5 billion of the $ 65 billion total to deliver broadband to rural communities smaller than 20,000 people, $ 5 million of which is obligated to utility cooperatives . The law invests $ 14.2 billion of the total in the Federal Communications Commission 's Affordable Connectivity Program , the successor to the American Rescue Plan's broadband subsidies. It gives a $ 30 monthly discount on internet services to qualifying low-income families ($ 75 on tribal lands), and provides
5632-518: The World Economic Forum , 14.5 million more deaths are expected due to climate change by 2050. 30% of the global population currently live in areas where extreme heat and humidity are already associated with excess deaths. By 2100, 50% to 75% of the global population would live in such areas. While total crop yields have been increasing in the past 50 years due to agricultural improvements, climate change has already decreased
5760-414: The carbon cycle . While plants on land and in the ocean absorb most excess emissions of CO 2 every year, that CO 2 is returned to the atmosphere when biological matter is digested, burns, or decays. Land-surface carbon sink processes, such as carbon fixation in the soil and photosynthesis, remove about 29% of annual global CO 2 emissions. The ocean has absorbed 20 to 30% of emitted CO 2 over
5888-402: The climate system . Solar irradiance has been measured directly by satellites , and indirect measurements are available from the early 1600s onwards. Since 1880, there has been no upward trend in the amount of the Sun's energy reaching the Earth, in contrast to the warming of the lower atmosphere (the troposphere ). The upper atmosphere (the stratosphere ) would also be warming if the Sun
6016-971: The extinction of many species. The oceans have heated more slowly than the land, but plants and animals in the ocean have migrated towards the colder poles faster than species on land. Just as on land, heat waves in the ocean occur more frequently due to climate change, harming a wide range of organisms such as corals, kelp , and seabirds . Ocean acidification makes it harder for marine calcifying organisms such as mussels , barnacles and corals to produce shells and skeletons ; and heatwaves have bleached coral reefs . Harmful algal blooms enhanced by climate change and eutrophication lower oxygen levels, disrupt food webs and cause great loss of marine life. Coastal ecosystems are under particular stress. Almost half of global wetlands have disappeared due to climate change and other human impacts. Plants have come under increased stress from damage by insects. The effects of climate change are impacting humans everywhere in
6144-432: The socioeconomic scenario and the mitigation scenario, models produce atmospheric CO 2 concentrations that range widely between 380 and 1400 ppm. The environmental effects of climate change are broad and far-reaching, affecting oceans , ice, and weather. Changes may occur gradually or rapidly. Evidence for these effects comes from studying climate change in the past, from modelling, and from modern observations. Since
6272-405: The 18th century and 1970 there was little net warming, as the warming impact of greenhouse gas emissions was offset by cooling from sulfur dioxide emissions. Sulfur dioxide causes acid rain , but it also produces sulfate aerosols in the atmosphere, which reflect sunlight and cause global dimming . After 1970, the increasing accumulation of greenhouse gases and controls on sulfur pollution led to
6400-612: The 1950s, droughts and heat waves have appeared simultaneously with increasing frequency. Extremely wet or dry events within the monsoon period have increased in India and East Asia. Monsoonal precipitation over the Northern Hemisphere has increased since 1980. The rainfall rate and intensity of hurricanes and typhoons is likely increasing , and the geographic range likely expanding poleward in response to climate warming. Frequency of tropical cyclones has not increased as
6528-501: The 1971 creation of Amtrak (which under the law will receive $ 22 billion in advance appropriations and $ 19 billion in fully authorized funds). It directly appropriated $ 66 billion for rail over a five-year period (including the Amtrak appropriations), of which at least $ 18 billion is designated for expanding passenger rail service to new corridors, and it authorized an additional $ 36 billion. Most of this funding for new passenger rail lines
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#17327875756756656-500: The 1980s, the terms global warming and climate change became more common, often being used interchangeably. Scientifically, global warming refers only to increased surface warming, while climate change describes both global warming and its effects on Earth's climate system , such as precipitation changes. Climate change can also be used more broadly to include changes to the climate that have happened throughout Earth's history. Global warming —used as early as 1975 —became
6784-440: The Arctic is forcing many species to relocate or become extinct . Even if efforts to minimize future warming are successful, some effects will continue for centuries. These include ocean heating , ocean acidification and sea level rise . Climate change threatens people with increased flooding , extreme heat, increased food and water scarcity, more disease, and economic loss . Human migration and conflict can also be
6912-435: The Arctic is another major feedback, this reduces the reflectivity of the Earth's surface in the region and accelerates Arctic warming . This additional warming also contributes to permafrost thawing, which releases methane and CO 2 into the atmosphere. Around half of human-caused CO 2 emissions have been absorbed by land plants and by the oceans. This fraction is not static and if future CO 2 emissions decrease,
7040-482: The BIP is a competitive grant program to replace, rehabilitate, preserve, or make resiliency improvements to bridges. Half of the funding is reserved for large bridge projects, which are defined as projects that cost over $ 100 million. Large projects are funded at a maximum 50% federal share, while other projects are funded at a maximum 80% federal share. The infrastructure law is the largest investment in passenger rail since
7168-787: The Biden administration announced it would award $ 450 million from the Act to projects that built solar farms on abandoned coal mines. Further support for coal communities followed. In November 2023 the IIJA's Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains announced $ 275 million in grants would go to seven projects in coal communities, creating 1,500 jobs and leveraging $ 600 million in private investment. The next October it announced $ 428 million in grants for 14 projects in coal communities, creating 1,900 jobs and leveraging $ 500 million in private investments. United States federal statute An act of Congress
7296-439: The Biden administration. On June 8, the administration shifted its focus to a bipartisan group of 20 senators, which had been working on a package tentatively priced around $ 900 billion. On June 10, a bipartisan group of 10 senators reached a deal costing $ 974 billion over five years; or about $ 1.2 trillion if stretched over eight years. On June 16, the plan was endorsed by a bipartisan group of 21 senators. On June 24,
7424-545: The CO 2 released by the chemical reactions for making cement , steel , aluminum , and fertilizer . Methane emissions come from livestock , manure, rice cultivation , landfills, wastewater, and coal mining , as well as oil and gas extraction . Nitrous oxide emissions largely come from the microbial decomposition of fertilizer . While methane only lasts in the atmosphere for an average of 12 years, CO 2 lasts much longer. The Earth's surface absorbs CO 2 as part of
7552-664: The Corridor. To help plan and guide the expansion of passenger rail service beyond the Northeast Corridor , the infrastructure law also created a $ 1.8 billion Corridor Identification and Development Program . The law also expands eligibility for a potential $ 23 billion in transit funding to these corridors and changes the allocation methods for state government-supported passenger rail shorter than 750 miles, to encourage states to implement more such service. The law established and authorized $ 1.75 billion over five years for
7680-604: The Earth will be able to absorb up to around 70%. If they increase substantially, it'll still absorb more carbon than now, but the overall fraction will decrease to below 40%. This is because climate change increases droughts and heat waves that eventually inhibit plant growth on land, and soils will release more carbon from dead plants when they are warmer . The rate at which oceans absorb atmospheric carbon will be lowered as they become more acidic and experience changes in thermohaline circulation and phytoplankton distribution. Uncertainty over feedbacks, particularly cloud cover,
7808-466: The House would not vote on the physical infrastructure bill until the larger bill passes in the Senate, despite the fact that reconciliation overrides much of the obstructive power of the filibuster . White House officials stated on July 7 that legislative text was nearing completion. On July 14, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee advanced an energy bill expected to be included in
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#17327875756757936-690: The IIJA invests $ 45 billion in innovation and industrial policy for key emerging technologies in energy; $ 430 million–$ 21 billion in new demonstration projects at the DOE; and nearly $ 24 billion in onshoring, supply chain resilience , and bolstering U.S.-held competitive advantages in energy; the latter amount will be divided into an $ 8.6 billion investment in carbon capture and storage , $ 3 billion in battery material reprocessing, $ 3 billion in battery recycling , $ 1 billion in rare-earth minerals stockpiling, and $ 8 billion in new research hubs for green hydrogen . The DOE has imposed grant requirements on $ 7 billion of
8064-441: The IIJA's battery and transportation spending, which are meant to promote community benefits agreements , social justice , and formation of trade unions . It created the $ 225 million Resilient and Efficient Codes Implementation program for cities, tribes and counties to revise building codes for electrical and heating work. Finally, the law gives $ 4.7 billion to cap orphan wells abandoned by oil and gas companies. The law invests
8192-440: The IIJA, CaSA, and IRA together catalyzed over $ 988 billion in private investment (including $ 446 billion in electronics and semiconductors, $ 180 billion in electric vehicles and batteries, $ 184 billion in clean power, $ 84 billion in clean energy tech manufacturing and infrastructure, and $ 48 billion in heavy industry) and over $ 696.3 billion in public infrastructure spending (including $ 96.8 billion in energy aside from tax credits in
8320-497: The IRA). In September 2023, White House data revealed that 60 percent of the Act's energy and transmission funding (up to that point, totaling $ 12.31 billion) had been awarded to states that voted majority Republican in the 2020 election cycle. Of the Act's top ten recipients, seven states had voted majority Republican, with Wyoming ($ 1.95 billion) and Texas ($ 1.71 billion) in the lead. The largest single energy project to receive Act funds
8448-533: The IRS portion of the funding had reportedly been scrapped. Biden stipulated that a separate "human infrastructure" bill (notably child care , home care , and climate change ) – later known as the Build Back Better Act – must also pass, whether through bipartisanship or reconciliation , but later walked back this position. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi similarly stated that
8576-642: The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The Georgetown Climate Center tried to estimate how the $ 599 billion investment for surface transportation in the law can impact emissions from transportation. It created two scenarios: "high emissions" and "low emissions". In the first scenario, from the money dedicated to highways, more money will go to building new highways, while in the second, more will go to repairing existing highways. The other spending areas characteristics are not so different. The first scenario sees increased cumulative emissions over
8704-463: The NTIA's Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program, $ 1 billion to a new middle mile infrastructure program, $ 1.44 billion in formula grants to state and territorial digital equity plan implementation, $ 60 million in formula grants to new digital equity plan development, and $ 1.25 billion in discretionary grants to "specific types of political subdivisions to implement digital equity projects". The law gives
8832-521: The National Culvert Removal, Replacement, and Restoration Grant program to improve the passage of anadromous fish such as salmon . Biden's infrastructure advisor and the staffer in charge of implementing the law has been identified as Mitch Landrieu . Biden's National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has been identified as the staffer in charge of ensuring the law does not conflict with American foreign policy interests. To support
8960-757: The REPEAT Project, a partnership between the Evolved Energy Research firm and Princeton University 's ZERO Lab, said the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act alone will make only a small reduction in emissions, but as they say: We lack modeling capabilities to reflect the net effect of surface transportation investments in highways (which tend to increase on-road vehicle and freight miles traveled) and rail and public transit (which tend to reduce on-road vehicle and freight miles traveled). These significant programs are therefore not modeled in this analysis, an important limitation of our assessment of
9088-492: The Restoration and Enhancement Grant program intended to revive discontinued passenger rail services will receive $ 250 million in advance appropriations and $ 250 million in fully authorized funds. Per the law's requirements, at least $ 12 billion is available and $ 3.4–4.1 billion authorized for expanding service outside of the Northeast Corridor , and $ 24 billion is available and $ 3.4–4.1 billion authorized to partially rebuild
9216-623: The Squad ") in supporting the legislation. The six Democrats who voted 'No' stated that their opposition was because the legislation had been decoupled from the social-safety net provisions of the Build Back Better bill. Biden signed the bill into law at a signing ceremony on November 15. The following is the bill summary authorized by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) for the INVEST in America Act,
9344-485: The United States Code; rather, it prevents the act from being enforced. However, the act as published in annotated codes and legal databases is marked with annotations indicating that it is no longer good law. Climate change Present-day climate change includes both global warming —the ongoing increase in global average temperature —and its wider effects on Earth's climate . Climate change in
9472-441: The absorption of sunlight, it also increases melting and sea-level rise. Limiting new black carbon deposits in the Arctic could reduce global warming by 0.2 °C by 2050. The effect of decreasing sulfur content of fuel oil for ships since 2020 is estimated to cause an additional 0.05 °C increase in global mean temperature by 2050. As the Sun is the Earth's primary energy source, changes in incoming sunlight directly affect
9600-717: The administration had been accelerating funding approvals. Public attention has remained relatively low, due in part to slow implementation of projects. The White House offers a "Map of Progress" which tracks all spending that resulted from the act. According to the New Democrat -linked think tank Center for American Progress , the IIJA, the CHIPS and Science Act , and the Inflation Reduction Act have together catalyzed over 35,000 public and private investments. Economists Noah Smith and Joseph Politano credited
9728-504: The administration reduced the price tag to $ 1.7 trillion, which was quickly rejected by Republicans. A day later, a bipartisan group within the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee announced that they had reached a deal for $ 304 billion in U.S. highway funding. This was approved unanimously by the committee on May 26. On June 4, House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chair Peter DeFazio announced
9856-411: The atmosphere , for instance by increasing forest cover and farming with methods that capture carbon in soil . Before the 1980s it was unclear whether the warming effect of increased greenhouse gases was stronger than the cooling effect of airborne particulates in air pollution . Scientists used the term inadvertent climate modification to refer to human impacts on the climate at this time. In
9984-452: The atmosphere. volcanic CO 2 emissions are more persistent, but they are equivalent to less than 1% of current human-caused CO 2 emissions. Volcanic activity still represents the single largest natural impact (forcing) on temperature in the industrial era. Yet, like the other natural forcings, it has had negligible impacts on global temperature trends since the Industrial Revolution. The climate system's response to an initial forcing
10112-454: The biggest threats to global health in the 21st century. Scientists have warned about the irreversible harms it poses. Extreme weather events affect public health, and food and water security . Temperature extremes lead to increased illness and death. Climate change increases the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events. It can affect transmission of infectious diseases , such as dengue fever and malaria . According to
10240-400: The bipartisan group met with the president and reached a compromise deal costing $ 1.2 trillion over eight years, which focuses on physical infrastructure (notably roads, bridges, railways, water, sewage, broadband, electric vehicles). This was planned to be paid for through reinforced Internal Revenue Service (IRS) collection, unspent COVID-19 relief funds, and other sources. By July 2021,
10368-483: The bipartisan package. On July 21, Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer put forward a "shell bill" for a vote to kick off debate in the Senate, intending to add the bipartisan text via an amendment. On July 25, Republican senator Rob Portman stated that an agreement was "about 90%" complete, with mass transit being one remaining point of contention. On July 30, Portman stated that this had been resolved. On July 28, Senator Kyrsten Sinema stated that she did not support
10496-540: The carbon cycle, such as the fertilizing effect of CO 2 on plant growth. Feedbacks are expected to trend in a positive direction as greenhouse gas emissions continue, raising climate sensitivity. These feedback processes alter the pace of global warming. For instance, warmer air can hold more moisture in the form of water vapour , which is itself a potent greenhouse gas. Warmer air can also make clouds higher and thinner, and therefore more insulating, increasing climate warming. The reduction of snow cover and sea ice in
10624-551: The climate cycled through ice ages . One of the hotter periods was the Last Interglacial , around 125,000 years ago, where temperatures were between 0.5 °C and 1.5 °C warmer than before the start of global warming. This period saw sea levels 5 to 10 metres higher than today. The most recent glacial maximum 20,000 years ago was some 5–7 °C colder. This period has sea levels that were over 125 metres (410 ft) lower than today. Temperatures stabilized in
10752-516: The competitive portion would award $ 8.8 million to 12 communities on October 12, 2023, with the next award applications due in April (later changed to October) 2024. By June 28, 2024, the seventh tranche of funding had been awarded from the EECBG program, totaling about $ 150 million for 175 communities, with that date's instance seeing $ 18.5 million awarded to four states and 20 communities. In April 2023,
10880-684: The current interglacial period beginning 11,700 years ago . This period also saw the start of agriculture. Historical patterns of warming and cooling, like the Medieval Warm Period and the Little Ice Age , did not occur at the same time across different regions. Temperatures may have reached as high as those of the late 20th century in a limited set of regions. Climate information for that period comes from climate proxies , such as trees and ice cores . Around 1850 thermometer records began to provide global coverage. Between
11008-403: The degree of warming future emissions will cause when accounting for the strength of climate feedbacks . Models also predict the circulation of the oceans, the annual cycle of the seasons, and the flows of carbon between the land surface and the atmosphere. The physical realism of models is tested by examining their ability to simulate current or past climates. Past models have underestimated
11136-427: The destroyed trees release CO 2 , and are not replaced by new trees, removing that carbon sink . Between 2001 and 2018, 27% of deforestation was from permanent clearing to enable agricultural expansion for crops and livestock. Another 24% has been lost to temporary clearing under the shifting cultivation agricultural systems. 26% was due to logging for wood and derived products, and wildfires have accounted for
11264-401: The distribution of heat and precipitation around the globe. The World Meteorological Organization estimates there is an 80% chance that global temperatures will exceed 1.5 °C warming for at least one year between 2024 and 2028. The chance of the 5-year average being above 1.5 °C is almost half. The IPCC expects the 20-year average global temperature to exceed +1.5 °C in
11392-444: The dominant direct influence on temperature from land use change. Thus, land use change to date is estimated to have a slight cooling effect. Air pollution, in the form of aerosols, affects the climate on a large scale. Aerosols scatter and absorb solar radiation. From 1961 to 1990, a gradual reduction in the amount of sunlight reaching the Earth's surface was observed. This phenomenon is popularly known as global dimming , and
11520-610: The early 2030s. The IPCC Sixth Assessment Report (2021) included projections that by 2100 global warming is very likely to reach 1.0–1.8 °C under a scenario with very low emissions of greenhouse gases , 2.1–3.5 °C under an intermediate emissions scenario , or 3.3–5.7 °C under a very high emissions scenario . The warming will continue past 2100 in the intermediate and high emission scenarios, with future projections of global surface temperatures by year 2300 being similar to millions of years ago. The remaining carbon budget for staying beneath certain temperature increases
11648-550: The enactment of the infrastructure law in 2021, no dedicated federal bridge funding had existed since fiscal year 2013. The law created two new programs specifically to fund bridge projects: With $ 27.5 billion over five years, the BFP distributes funds to every state, the District of Columbia , and Puerto Rico based on a formula that accounts for each state's cost to replace or rehabilitate its poor or fair condition bridges. Each state
11776-490: The energy policy of the United States. The Boston Consulting Group projects $ 41 billion of the Act will be germane to climate action in energy. $ 11 billion of the $ 73 billion amount will be invested in the electrical grid 's adjustment to renewable energy , with some of the money going to new loans for electric power transmission lines and required studies for future transmission needs. $ 6 billion of that $ 73 billion will go to domestic nuclear power . Also of that $ 73 billion,
11904-430: The entire atmosphere—is ruled out because only the lower atmosphere has warmed. Atmospheric aerosols produce a smaller, cooling effect. Other drivers, such as changes in albedo , are less impactful. Greenhouse gases are transparent to sunlight , and thus allow it to pass through the atmosphere to heat the Earth's surface. The Earth radiates it as heat , and greenhouse gases absorb a portion of it. This absorption slows
12032-736: The final bill, de-emphasized these incentives. The final version restores the Superfund excise tax on certain chemicals which expired in 1995. According to NPR , the version which passed the Senate on July 28 was set to include: The law would also make the Minority Business Development Agency a permanent agency. It authorizes the DOT to create an organization called the Advanced Research Projects Agency–Infrastructure (ARPA–I), with
12160-920: The first $ 185 million of which were awarded to 45 projects on February 28, 2023. The program was later combined with the Neighborhood Equity and Access program from the Inflation Reduction Act for efficiency reasons, before the next 132 projects were given $ 3.3 billion in awards on March 13, 2024. The Act creates the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program within the Department of Energy. It provides funding of up to $ 4.155 billion to state governments for up to 80 percent of eligible project costs, to add substantial open-access electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure along major highway corridors. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act requires
12288-756: The former, similar to a technology mandated by the European Union in July 2022. The law also requires the NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program to test collision avoidance systems in preparation for new federal regulations; new DOT reporting requirements for statistical data on crashes involving motorized scooters and electric bicycles ; new federal regulations on headlamps; research directives on technology to protect pedestrians and cyclists, advanced driver-assistance systems , federal hood and bumper regulations, smart city infrastructure, and self-driving cars ; and
12416-604: The global climate system has grown with only brief pauses since at least 1970, and over 90% of this extra energy has been stored in the ocean . The rest has heated the atmosphere , melted ice, and warmed the continents. The Northern Hemisphere and the North Pole have warmed much faster than the South Pole and Southern Hemisphere . The Northern Hemisphere not only has much more land, but also more seasonal snow cover and sea ice . As these surfaces flip from reflecting
12544-633: The hesitation of several moderates to pass the reconciliation bill before it could be scored by the Congressional Budget Office made passing the bipartisan bill unlikely. Negotiations between centrist and progressive Democrats concluded with the centrists committing to passing the Build Back Better Act. The bill ultimately went to a vote, as did a rule to vote on the larger bill once it was scored, passing 228–206; 13 Republicans joined all but six Democrats (members of "
12672-401: The implementation of the Act, Biden issued Executive Order 14052, which establishes a task force comprising most of his Cabinet. Biden appointed Landrieu and then- United States National Economic Council chief Brian Deese as the task force co-chairs. In May 2022, the Biden administration published a manual on the use of the law, aimed mainly at local authorities. The manual briefly describes
12800-825: The largest federal investment in public transit in history. The law includes spending figures of $ 105 billion in public transport. It also spends $ 110 billion on fixing roads and bridges and includes measures for climate change mitigation and improving access for cyclists and pedestrians . Increasing use of public transport and related transit-oriented development can reduce transportation emissions in human settlements by 78% and overall US emissions by 15%. The law includes spending: New or improved, affordable transportation options to increase safe mobility and connectivity for all, including for people with disabilities, through lower-carbon travel like walking, cycling, rolling, and transit that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote active travel. $ 73 billion will be spent on overhauling
12928-572: The last 14 million years. Concentrations of methane are far higher than they were over the last 800,000 years. Global human-caused greenhouse gas emissions in 2019 were equivalent to 59 billion tonnes of CO 2 . Of these emissions, 75% was CO 2 , 18% was methane , 4% was nitrous oxide, and 2% was fluorinated gases . CO 2 emissions primarily come from burning fossil fuels to provide energy for transport , manufacturing, heating , and electricity. Additional CO 2 emissions come from deforestation and industrial processes , which include
13056-436: The last two decades. CO 2 is only removed from the atmosphere for the long term when it is stored in the Earth's crust, which is a process that can take millions of years to complete. Around 30% of Earth's land area is largely unusable for humans ( glaciers , deserts , etc.), 26% is forests , 10% is shrubland and 34% is agricultural land . Deforestation is the main land use change contributor to global warming, as
13184-441: The last: internal climate variability processes can make any year 0.2 °C warmer or colder than the average. From 1998 to 2013, negative phases of two such processes, Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) and Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO) caused a short slower period of warming called the " global warming hiatus ". After the "hiatus", the opposite occurred, with years like 2023 exhibiting temperatures well above even
13312-608: The lower atmosphere. Carbon dioxide , the primary greenhouse gas driving global warming, has grown by about 50% and is at levels not seen for millions of years. Climate change has an increasingly large impact on the environment . Deserts are expanding , while heat waves and wildfires are becoming more common. Amplified warming in the Arctic has contributed to thawing permafrost , retreat of glaciers and sea ice decline . Higher temperatures are also causing more intense storms , droughts, and other weather extremes . Rapid environmental change in mountains , coral reefs , and
13440-413: The more popular term after NASA climate scientist James Hansen used it in his 1988 testimony in the U.S. Senate . Since the 2000s, climate change has increased usage. Various scientists, politicians and media may use the terms climate crisis or climate emergency to talk about climate change, and may use the term global heating instead of global warming . Over the last few million years
13568-684: The original version which passed the House on July 1, 2021: The specific amounts in surface transportation spending were $ 343 billion for roads, highways, bridges and motor safety, $ 109 billion for transit, and $ 95 billion for rail. Provisions of the bill incentivized prioritizing maintenance and repair spending over spending on new infrastructure, holistically planning for all modes of transport when considering how to connect job centers to housing (including collecting data on reductions in vehicle miles traveled through transit-oriented development ), and lowering speed limits to increase road safety and encourage building complete streets . The Senate version, and
13696-543: The over 350 programs included in the law. Each description includes the aim of the program, its funding and possible recipients, its period of availability, and more. The programs are grouped into four categories: "Transportation", "Climate, Energy and the Environment", "Broadband", and "Other Programs". By the law's second anniversary in November 2023, around $ 400 billion from the law, about a third of all IIJA funding,
13824-445: The president rejects a bill or resolution while the Congress is in session, a two-thirds vote of both houses of Congress is needed for reconsideration to be successful. Promulgation in the sense of publishing and proclaiming the law is accomplished by the president, or the relevant presiding officer in the case of an overridden veto, delivering the act to the archivist of the United States . The archivist provides for its publication as
13952-416: The president, receive a congressional override from 2 ⁄ 3 of both houses. In the United States, acts of Congress are designated as either public laws , relating to the general public, or private laws , relating to specific institutions or individuals. Since 1957, all Acts of Congress have been designated as "Public Law X–Y" or "Private Law X–Y", where X is the number of the Congress and Y refers to
14080-619: The rate at which heat escapes into space, trapping heat near the Earth's surface and warming it over time. While water vapour (≈50%) and clouds (≈25%) are the biggest contributors to the greenhouse effect, they primarily change as a function of temperature and are therefore mostly considered to be feedbacks that change climate sensitivity . On the other hand, concentrations of gases such as CO 2 (≈20%), tropospheric ozone , CFCs and nitrous oxide are added or removed independently from temperature, and are therefore considered to be external forcings that change global temperatures. Before
14208-522: The rate of Arctic shrinkage and underestimated the rate of precipitation increase. Sea level rise since 1990 was underestimated in older models, but more recent models agree well with observations. The 2017 United States-published National Climate Assessment notes that "climate models may still be underestimating or missing relevant feedback processes". Additionally, climate models may be unable to adequately predict short-term regional climatic shifts. A subset of climate models add societal factors to
14336-622: The rate of yield growth . Fisheries have been negatively affected in multiple regions. While agricultural productivity has been positively affected in some high latitude areas, mid- and low-latitude areas have been negatively affected. According to the World Economic Forum, an increase in drought in certain regions could cause 3.2 million deaths from malnutrition by 2050 and stunting in children. With 2 °C warming, global livestock headcounts could decline by 7–10% by 2050, as less animal feed will be available. If
14464-405: The recent average. This is why the temperature change is defined in terms of a 20-year average, which reduces the noise of hot and cold years and decadal climate patterns, and detects the long-term signal. A wide range of other observations reinforce the evidence of warming. The upper atmosphere is cooling, because greenhouse gases are trapping heat near the Earth's surface, and so less heat
14592-453: The reconciliation resolution until there was a vote on the bipartisan infrastructure bill. While both Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had reversed earlier positions to support passing the bipartisan bill separately, progressives including Congressional Progressive Caucus chairwoman Pramila Jayapal and Senator Bernie Sanders maintained that it be utilized as leverage to pass the most expensive reconciliation bill possible. The lack of
14720-411: The release of chemical compounds that influence clouds, and by changing wind patterns. In tropic and temperate areas the net effect is to produce significant warming, and forest restoration can make local temperatures cooler. At latitudes closer to the poles, there is a cooling effect as forest is replaced by snow-covered (and more reflective) plains. Globally, these increases in surface albedo have been
14848-476: The remaining 23%. Some forests have not been fully cleared, but were already degraded by these impacts. Restoring these forests also recovers their potential as a carbon sink. Local vegetation cover impacts how much of the sunlight gets reflected back into space ( albedo ), and how much heat is lost by evaporation . For instance, the change from a dark forest to grassland makes the surface lighter, causing it to reflect more sunlight. Deforestation can also modify
14976-583: The sea levels by at least 3.3 m (10 ft 10 in) over approximately 2000 years. Recent warming has driven many terrestrial and freshwater species poleward and towards higher altitudes . For instance, the range of hundreds of North American birds has shifted northward at an average rate of 1.5 km/year over the past 55 years. Higher atmospheric CO 2 levels and an extended growing season have resulted in global greening. However, heatwaves and drought have reduced ecosystem productivity in some regions. The future balance of these opposing effects
15104-408: The sequential order of the bill (when it was enacted). For example, P. L. 111–5 ( American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 ) was the fifth enacted public law of the 111th United States Congress . Public laws are also often abbreviated as Pub. L. No. X–Y. When the legislation of those two kinds are proposed, it is called public bill and private bill respectively. The word "act", as used in
15232-488: The term "act of Congress", is a common, not a proper noun . The capitalization of the word "act" (especially when used standing alone to refer to an act mentioned earlier by its full name) is deprecated by some dictionaries and usage authorities. However, the Bluebook requires "Act" to be capitalized when referring to a specific legislative act. The United States Code capitalizes "act". The term "act of Congress"
15360-424: The three acts together for spurring booms in factory construction and utility jobs, as well as limiting geographic concentrations of key industries to ensure more dispersed job creation nationwide, though they raised issues of whether the three would serve to limit project delays and significantly increase labor productivity in the long term. The Biden administration itself claimed that as of November 15, 2024,
15488-663: The transportation and road proposals of the original House bill. This amended version included approximately $ 1.2 trillion in spending, with $ 550 billion newly authorized spending on top of what Congress was planning to authorize regularly. The amended bill was passed 69–30 by the Senate on August 10, 2021. On November 5, it was passed 228–206 by the House , and ten days later was signed into law by President Biden. On March 31, 2021, President Joe Biden unveiled his $ 2.3 trillion American Jobs Plan (which, when combined with
15616-433: The weekend. On August 10, the bill was passed by the Senate 69–30. It sets aside $ 550 billion in new spending. A procedural vote on a House rule concerning passing both bills passed along party lines on August 24. In early August, nine moderate Democrats called for an immediate House vote on the bill, citing a desire not to lose the momentum from the Senate passage of the bill. They committed to voting against taking up
15744-438: The world. Impacts can be observed on all continents and ocean regions, with low-latitude, less developed areas facing the greatest risk. Continued warming has potentially "severe, pervasive and irreversible impacts" for people and ecosystems. The risks are unevenly distributed, but are generally greater for disadvantaged people in developing and developed countries. The World Health Organization calls climate change one of
15872-558: The years 2022–2040 by more than 200 million tons, while the second decreases them by around 250 million tons. In August 2022, the Boston Consulting Group analyzed the Act and found $ 41 billion of it would be spent on energy projects germane to climate action, $ 18 billion on similarly germane transportation projects, $ 18 billion on "clean tech" intended to cut hard-to-abate emissions, $ 0 on manufacturing, and $ 34 billion on other climate action provisions. The law includes
16000-589: Was a Generation IV reactor in Kemmerer, Wyoming by the nuclear fission startup TerraPower . In November 2022, the Biden administration announced it would furnish $ 550 million for the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program for clean energy generators for low-income and minority communities, the first such appropriation since the Recovery Act in 2009. The administration announced
16128-420: Was allocated to more than 40,000 projects related to infrastructure , transport , and sustainability . By May 2024, the law's halfway mark, the numbers had increased to $ 454 billion (38 percent of the Act's funds) for more than 56,000 projects, and by the third anniversary in November 2024, they had increased to $ 568 billion (47 percent) to 68,000 projects, leaving 53 percent of IIJA funds unallocated but showing
16256-508: Was initially a $ 547–715 billion infrastructure package that included provisions related to federal highway aid, transit, highway safety , motor carrier, research, hazardous materials and rail programs of the Department of Transportation . After congressional negotiations, it was amended and renamed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to add funding for broadband access , clean water and electric grid renewal in addition to
16384-524: Was sending more energy to Earth, but instead, it has been cooling. This is consistent with greenhouse gases preventing heat from leaving the Earth's atmosphere. Explosive volcanic eruptions can release gases, dust and ash that partially block sunlight and reduce temperatures, or they can send water vapour into the atmosphere, which adds to greenhouse gases and increases temperatures. These impacts on temperature only last for several years, because both water vapour and volcanic material have low persistence in
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