White House hosts event to celebrate the Inflation Reduction Act

The White House hosted an event Sept. 13 to celebrate the Inflation Reduction Act. The expansive legislative package, signed by President Joe Biden on Aug. 16, includes new tax credits for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), clean transportation fuels and hydrogen. It also expands and extends the 45Q tax credit for carbon capture and storage, includes $500 million in biofuel infrastructure funding, and extends several existing biofuel and bioenergy tax credits.

During his speech, President Joe Biden said the IRA takes the most aggressive action ever to confront the climate crisis and increase our energy security. He also highlighted how the new law will create new clean energy jobs and apprenticeships while lowering energy costs for American families.

One day prior to the event, on Sept. 12, Biden issued an executive order on the implementation of the energy and infrastructure provisions of the IRA. The executive order, in part, establishes a new White House Office on Clean Energy Innovation and Implementation within the Executive Office of the President. The new office will coordinate the policymaking process with respect to implementing the energy and infrastructure provisions of the IRA and other essential initiatives, according to the White House.

The new office will be headed by the senior advisor for clean energy innovation and implementation. Biden on Sept. 2 appointed John Podesta to serve as senior advisor to the president for clean energy innovation and implementation. Podesta is the founder and chair of the board of directors for the Center for American Progress. He also chairs the board of ClimateWorks Foundation and serves on the board of the Climate Jobs National Resource Center.

The Sept. 12 executive order also establishes a National Climate Task Force to help foster interagency coordination. The task force will be chaired by the senior advisor for clean energy innovation and implementation. The national climate advisor will serve as vice chair. The task force will have more than two dozen members, including the secretary of agriculture, the secretary of energy, and the EPA administrator.

A full copy of the executive order can be found on the White House website.