On Offense: Republicans are Raising America’s Energy Bill. Here’s How to Fight Back.

For a social media toolkit and data on job implications in all 50 states, please scroll. For a refresher on what’s in the bill, click here.

The House reconciliation bill slashes support for clean energy projects, eliminating supportive tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and making it much more expensive to build new energy projects across the US. Make no mistake: this bill is a tax increase on energy to help fund tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans.

The bill is particularly dangerous for nuclear energy, a longstanding bipartisan priority that House Republicans are moving to crush. If they succeed, they’ll kneecap America’s nuclear industry and hand the future of clean energy manufacturing to China on a silver platter.

Put simply, House Republicans are voting to make America weaker, gutting manufacturing, raising costs for working families, and ceding power to our competition. Below, we’ll help you message these changes effectively and sound the alarm on Republicans’ dangerous agenda. 

Best Messaging Practices

1. Focus On What Real People Lose

Americans don’t think in terms of tax credits–they think in terms of jobs, bills, and energy they count on. Instead of naming obscure policies, connect the dots to real impacts in local communities.

DO NOT: “By repealing 45Y and transferability, Republicans are making it harder for developers to access capital.”

DO:  “This bill raises taxes on new energy projects, making it harder for our communities to get the power we need and raising costs for working families.”

2. Don’t Call It Reconciliation

Most Americans don’t know what reconciliation is and don’t need to. Talking about procedural budget processes is a distraction from what really matters: for all their talk of lower prices and more manufacturing, Republicans are voting to raise prices for Americans and send manufacturing jobs to China.

DO NOT: “The House reconciliation package sunsets clean energy tax credits in the Inflation Reduction Act, making it harder for businesses to grow and build new energy projects.”

DO: “Republicans just voted to make it harder to build new energy projects here in America. That’s less manufacturing in our communities and more moving overseas to China.”

3. Clean Energy Means Lower Costs, Not Just a Safer Climate

As clean energy advocates, we know how critical it is to lower greenhouse gas emissions. But emphasizing cuts to climate hurts our case with everyday Americans. The consequences of cuts to clean energy have a lot in common with cuts to Medicaid and SNAP: costs for everyday people will go up. Tell that story and save the climate talk for another day.

DO NOT: “The GOP’s tax bill is a climate disaster, slashing funding for important clean energy projects that protect our environment.” 

DO: “House Republicans just voted to raise energy prices, drive up the cost of healthcare, and slash food assistance.”

Every State Loses If Republicans Repeal the IRA

A new study from Aurora shows how a full repeal of clean energy tax credits would impact clean energy investment, jobs, and energy supply in the next 15 years. Click here to see data for all 50 states.

Social Media Toolkit

For template copies of all five posts below, please use this link. This is designed to be plug-and-play. Please customize with relevant news stories and information from your state.

Sample Copy: Republicans want to rip off hardworking New Yorkers to fund tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. Not on my watch.

Sample Copy: Trump wants to jack up your costs, cut manufacturing jobs, and put America last on the world stage. This bill is big, but it’s far from beautiful—I’ll be a “hard no.”

Sample Copy: Energy prices are going up, and now Republicans are pushing a bill that would only make matters worse. The people of [insert district/state] elected me to lower their costs, and that’s exactly what I’m going to do.

Sample Copy: These people are not serious about lowering your costs.

Note: Feel free to replace this headline with one that highlights rising costs in your district/state. Use this headline from Pennsylvania and New Jersey as an example.

Sample Copy: The TRISCO-X Advanced Nuclear Plant created 875 jobs right here in Oak Ridge. Now Republicans want to hit “cancel” and shut down energy projects across the United States. I won’t sit back and watch them rip away paychecks from hardworking Americans.

Helpful Resources on Climate & Energy Cuts

• How Tax Credits Support America’s Nuclear Industry: A breakdown on how tech-neutral tax credits are essential to the success of American advanced nuclear, and how the reconciliation package’s early sunset dates, repeal of transferability, and tight restrictions would effectively gut the nuclear industry.
• How Trump is Raising Energy Costs for Working Families: An analysis of how Republicans’ energy agenda will drive up electricity costs immediately and in the long term for American families and businesses.
• Data on House Budget Impacts on the Economy: Modeling that shows definitely how the House budget package will harm the US economy, raise energy bills, and eliminate jobs.
• How Individual States Will Be Impacted: A detailed look at how eliminating tech-neutral tax credits will impact individual states, showing where jobs will be lost, how costs will rise, and how local economies will be hit.
• How the Loan Programs Office Grows US Energy: An explainer on how the Loan Programs Office plays a critical role in scaling up emerging clean energy industries and keeping the US competitive.