#climate negotiations

[rosszulorzott]

To the European Commission, European Parliament and Council of the European Union

Petition

We need fossil free politics before it’s too late. If EU decision-makers really want to introduce policies that benefit people and the planet then they need to stop listening to the fossil fuel industry.

We the supporters of this petition demand institutions enforce a firewall between the fossil fuel industry and decision-makers: 

by ending decision-makers’ interactions with the industry (that means no lobby meetings, no seats on expert and advisory bodies)

by avoiding conflicts of interest for government officials and employees, including closing the “revolving door” between the public sector and the fossil fuel industry

by ending the preferential treatment of the fossil fuel industry in climate negotiations

and by rejecting partnerships and sponsorships with the fossil fuel industry

We need to cut fossil fuel interests out of politics.

Why is this important?

EU Commissioners and high-level officials meet with fossil fuel lobbyists almost every single day. [1]

Politicians are talking out of both sides of their mouth - promising us the ambitious climate laws we’ve fought for while having daily meetings with Big Oil and Gas. The EU even put an ex-Shell consultant in charge of their climate policies. [2] You couldn’t make this farce up. 

But we can break up this cosy relationship. These weeks will see the new ‘ministers’ called Commissioners for the EU nominated. Who is chosen for these powerful positions and who they’re friendly with, will determine how much fossil fuel lobbyists can pollute our plans to address climate change.

Conversations are underway right now over who gets the powerful Commissioner jobs. We want those writing the rules to know we are watching them. If we create a huge noise, it’ll rule out any politicians in the pocket of the fossil fuel industry. 

Add your voice for a strong firewall between the EU and the fossil fuel industry.

[bumblebeeappletree]

80% of people displaced by the climate crisis are women, but there were only 7 women leaders at COP27 — here’s why gender diversity is so critical during climate negotiations.

This video was created in collaboration with Nature's Newsroom.

#Earth #Environment #ClimateCrisis #NowThis

[trendynewsnow]

Climate Negotiations in Baku: The Irony of Hosting Amidst Autocracy and Fossil Fuels

Climate Negotiations: A Paradox in Baku As the world gears up for this month’s United Nations-sponsored climate negotiations, it faces a dual challenge: escalating climate chaos coupled with a decline in democratic governance. The venue for this year’s talks, Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, serves as a stark reminder of this troubling intersection. Attendees will undoubtedly note the irony that…

[fumifooms]

"It was something I could fix" Sevika Jinx brotp sooo real i need this i need them I need the "I’m gonna exterminate the family i have left" to include Sevika because of an accident during battle I want the girl Sevika always called a jinx to jinx her and for her to not even be mad, just tough as nails with even tougher love even in her dying breath.

[larsnicklas]

one thing that is funny about m.arner fans though is that they ARE convinced that he is the first player ever to suffer from misogyny in hockey culture when don c.herry and his ilk have been calling euro players pussies derogatorily for time immemorial

[meteorologistaustenlonek]

"In October, Vicki Hollub, CEO of Occidental, one of the largest operators there, promised­ yet more production in a basin that Bloomberg last year described as “uniquely positioned to become the world’s most important growth engine for oil production.”

Did nobody tell them about climate change? " @Yale Environment 360

[botanicalbasilly]

Posted by @/gretathunberg on Instagram.

[borisbundleoflightlamp]

Quickly white girl condescending to Indian professor is this the way you act with all professors or are you being really fucking weird rn…..

[meanderingstream]

Summary of the achievements by week. More info can be found in each week’s post and by following the links there. 

(when it says $ was announced for a project, that is the relevant agency’s plan to distribute that money in a program- the agencies are of course funded by Congress and do not just decide unilaterally how to spend taxes)

Week 1

Limit bank overdraft fees proposal- 

effective October 2025 if approved

Fine oil/gas companies for emitting methane proposal

Fully effective 2026 if approved 

$104 million in grants to support clean energy projects

$5 billion student loans canceled for income driven repayment and public service loan forgiveness plans

Launched program to fight lead exposure in developing countries

Deal reached to revive the expanded child tax credit projected to lift 400,000 kids out of poverty in first year

Week 2

Paused all new natural gas export facilities 

$5 billion for infrastructure projects like fixing bridges, interstates, and offshore wind terminals.

New guidance requires insurance companies to cover contraceptive medicine under Affordable Care Act

Medicaid, Medicare, CHIP, and Federal Employee Health Benefits Program also must cover it

Federal agencies reported on progress implementing the order to protect medication abortion signed 1 year ago

Expanded child tax credit deal made it out of committee in The House

Senate foreign relations committee passed a bill to distribute $5 billion in seized Russian assets to Ukraine

Senate passed Train More Nurses Act

3 more Biden judges confirmed

Week 3

House overwhelmingly passed expanded child tax credit deal

Began negotiations on drug prices for Medicare

$240 million to modernize/refurbish airports across the country

Announced the 10 sites across US that will receive innovation investment for clean energy, sustainable textiles, semiconductor manufacturing, etc

State dept. reviews options for recognizing Palestinian statehood

Imposed sanctions on Israeli settlers who have engaged in violence against Palestinians and peace activists 

Loan to help reopen a Michigan nuclear power plant as part of goal to decarbonize the electric grid

IRS launched program to let people file taxes for free with them instead of paying for programs like TurboTax 

$28 million in grants for help with treatment of substance use disorders.

$72 million for 46 hydroelectric projects

Senate confirmed Biden's 175th federal judge. 

For first time in history a majority of a president’s nominees are not white men

Week 4

Announcement that 23 million Americans have been connected to high speed internet through the Affordable Connectivity Program. Sadly, the program will be forced to end if Republicans in Congress continue to block new funding

$5 billion for a National Semiconductor Technology Center

Finalized rules that will strengthen air quality standards around soot. Projected to prevent 4,200 premature deaths and save Americans $46 billion in health costs

$1.5 Billion investment in America's bus systems

Memorandum directing a strengthening of human rights safeguards around weapons transferred from US stockpiles to allied nations

Announced joint program to streamline Gov response to homelessness between HHS, HUD, 8 states and DC

Released study projecting Puerto Rico will be able to be 100% renewable energy by 2050

Low income Puerto Ricans will soon be able to apply for a solar power program, the first investments in a billion dollar DoE program for the island's renewable energy future

$417 million dollar loan to the North Carolina Turnpike Authority to complete a major transportation overhaul in the greater Raleigh area

Announced plan to invest federal funds to help measure and reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas production

Senate confirmed 2 more Biden nominated federal judges

Week 5

Released first draft for a new student loan forgiveness plan that will hopefully hold up in court

1.2 Billion Dollars to combat human trafficking, including $175 million in housing assistance to human trafficking victims

$970 Million for improvements at 114 airports across 44 states and 3 territories

Medicare & Medicaid released new guidelines to allow people to pay out of pocket prescription drug costs in monthly installments rather than as a lump sum

Added 150 more communities to EPA’s Closing America's Wastewater Access Gap Community Initiative to ensure people have basic running water and indoor plumbing

Announced deferred action for Palestinians in the US. This means any Palestinian living in the United States, no matter their legal status, can not be deported for any reason for the next 18 months

This will need to be renewed next year. A Harris administration almost certainly will. A Trump administration likely won’t.

$60 million in investment into clean geothermal energy

$83 million to help improve air quality monitoring across America

$63 million in investments in domestic heat-pump water-heater manufacturing. Which  reduce greenhouse gasses by 50% over the most efficient condensing gas boilers\

$5.1 million to organizations working on preventing homelessness, fighting depression and suicide, drug use and HIV prevention and treatment, family counseling, etc for LGBTQI+ Youth and their Families

In support of the oppressed Uyghur minority in China, the House passed 2 bill that would prohibit US Gov from spending money on projects that source materials from Xinjiang and create a permanent post at the State Dept. to coordinate policy on Uyghur Issues

Week 6

$5.8 billion in funding upgrade America's water systems

Canceled $1.2 billion in student loan debt for 153,000 borrowers through the SAVE Plan which erases federal student loan balances for those who originally borrowed $12,000 or less and have been making payments for at least 10 years

$100 million in federal funding for women’s health research

500 new sanctions against Russian targets in response to the murder of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny

$700 Million in new investments to benefit people in rural America for high speed internet, clean drinking water, sanitary wastewater, and more

$1.5 billion in upgrades to expand chip factories to boost American semiconductor manufacturing

$1.25 billion in  funding for local projects that improve roadway safety

The 2022 Safe Streets and Roads for All program has spent $1.7 billion in 1,000 communities impacting 70% of America's population

$19 million to help New Jersey buy electric school buses

Bonus: NASA landed spacecraft, Odysseus, on the moon, the 1st time in 50 years America has gone to the moon.

Week 7

$1.7 Billion in new commitments from local governments, health care systems, charities, business and nonprofits towards ending hunger in America

The White House Challenge to End Hunger and Build Healthy Communities has also led to the USDA’s program which feeds children over the summer in 37 partnering states

House passed a bill on Nuclear energy expanding the Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Capping copays that families pay to no more than 7% of income for the CCDBG grants for childcare and streamlining payments to childcare providers, ensuring prompt payment

House passed a bill improving the Small Business Administration’s 8(a) program which offers wide ranging training and support to small business owners who are socially and economically disadvantaged, predominantly native owned businesses

Announced steps to boost housing supply and lower home costs through a program which has created 12,000 affordable housing units since 2021 with $2 billion, and a program which has spent $4.35 billion since 2021 to build affordable rental homes and make home ownership a reality for Americans.

Also funding for manufactured housing, the first administration to do so

$336 million in investments in rural, remote, and tribal communities to lower energy costs and improve reliability

Proposed new rules to ensure airline passengers who use wheelchairs can travel safely and with dignity

$3 Billion dollar program to help ports become zero-emission

$1 Billion dollars to help clean up toxic Superfund sites

Bonus: Sweden cleared the final major barrier to become NATO's 32nd member

Week 8

Finalized a rule capping credit card late fees at $8

Announced a new Strike Force on Unfair and Illegal Pricing (especially targeting shrinkflation) 

Proposed a new rule banning bulk billing, where in landlords charge tenants of apartment buildings for internet, cable, or satellite services, even if they do not use it or opt into being billed

Announced actions that have prevented the collapse of the Colorado River system which provides drinking water and electricity for 40 million Americans in the Southwest. 

Executive Order to expand apprenticeships and reestablish direct communication between unions and management in federal agencies (a program allowed to lapse under Trump)

Actions to lower price of health care

Medicare negotiating prices for 10 drugs, first time in history they are allowed to negotiate prices

Proposal that medicare should be able to negotiate 50 such drug prices a year

Medicare Part-D capped the yearly price of ALL medications at $2,000

The President wants to expand this cap to all Americans

President called on congress to make permanent the tax credits for insurance premiums that saved Americans an average of $800/year 

President called for $12 billion in Women's Health Research to help close the historic research gap

President called for surprise billing protections to apply to ambulance providers, meaning people won't have to worry about an outrageous bill for an ambulance ride

Announced the first over-the-counter birth control pill will be available on pharmacy and store shelves nationwide and online later this month, and major pharmacies CVS and Walgreens will now offer the abortion pill Mifepristone

In the State of the Union, Biden called for a ceasefire in Gaza to release the hostages and bring in wide-ranging humanitarian aid.

Added over 100,000 more additional households to rental assistance

Called on Congress to expand it by more than half a million and to pass a bill giving $25,000 in down payment assistance to first-generation homebuyers

President wants to expand the Affordable Housing Program and the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit. Also seeks tax credits for 1st time buyers and those selling their starter homes at under market value to owner-occupant

Bonus: March 7th 2024, Sweden formally joined NATO

Week 9

IRS launched direct file pilot program

Biden expressed support for trans and non-binary youth in the aftermath of the suicide of Nex Benedict, and Dept. of Ed.’s Office of Civil Rights opened an investigation into his school district

Vice President Kamala Harris became the first sitting Vice-President (or President) to visit an abortion provider as part of her Reproductive Rights Tour

$3.3 billion worth of infrastructure projects across 40 states designed to reconnect communities divided by transportation infrastructure

Taking steps to eliminate junk fees for college students, plan to ban schools from automatically billing for textbooks and pocketing leftover money on student meal plans

$120 million in investments to help boost Climate Resilience in Tribal Communities

$750 million dollars in investment in clean hydrogen power

$2.3 billion loan to build a lithium processing plant in Nevada (a key component in rechargeable batteries used it electric vehicles)

$1.2 billion in funds to reduce pollution in public transportation

Geothermal Energy Optimization Act introduced in the Senate, which would help expand geothermal projects on public lands.

The Justice for Breonna Taylor Act was introduced in the Senate banning No Knock Warrants nationwide

Bill was introduced in the House requiring the US Postal Service to cover the costs of any late fees on bills that USPS failed to deliver on time

Senate Confirmed 3 more Biden nominees to be lifetime federal judges: Jasmine Yoon the first Asian-America federal judge in Virginia, Sunil Harjani in Illinois, and Melissa DuBose the first LGBTQ and first person of color to serve as a federal judge in Rhode Island. Brings total # of Biden judges to 185

Week 10

Announced new emission standards with the goal of having more than half of new cars and light trucks sold in the US be low/zero emission by 2032

Canceled nearly $6 Billion dollars in student loan debt for 78,000 borrowers who work in public sector jobs like teachers, nurses, social workers, firefighters, etc

Under Pressure from the administration and Democrats in Congress, Drugmaker AstraZeneca joins rival Boehringer Ingelheim in capping the price of inhalers at $35, the same price the Biden Admin capped the price of insulin for seniors

The Dept. of Justice sued Apple for being an illegal monopoly in smartphones

EPA passed a rule banning the final type of asbestos still used in the United States

$8.5 billion to help build advanced computer chips in America

Executive Order prioritizing research into women's health and directing $200 million into it

Democratic Senators introduced the "Shrinkflation Prevention Act" 

$45 million in projects that improve Bicyclist and Pedestrian Connectivity and Safety

$77 Million to put 180 electric school buses onto the streets of New York City

Senate confirmed Nicole Berner to Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, along with Edward Kiel and Eumi Lee as district judges, bringing Biden’s federal judge appointments to 188

Week 11

The Administration responded to the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, promising to clear the harbor and rebuild the bride. $60 million in emergency funds are already released, and Biden is expected to seek $1 billion from Congress

VP Harris announced $1 billion dollars in new investments as part of the Central America Forward partnership to improve conditions in Central America so people there are not so desperate to trust human traffickers to reach the US. Also announced $175 million dollars of direct aid to Guatemala

Announced $1.5 billion dollar loan to help restart the Palisades Nuclear Plant in Michigan

Social media push to inform the public about the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan under which anyone making $16 an hour or less has a monthly payment of $0 on their student loans. Republicans are suing to try to shut down the SAVE Plan

Biden extended the window for low-income Americans to apply for Obamacare, rolled back Trump era rules that allowed subsidies for "Junk Health insurance" which offer very little coverage, often mislead consumers about what’s covered, and don't have to follow Obamacare standards so can refuse to cover preexisting conditions.

Announced new regulations aimed at "turbocharging" the number of electric trucks on the road

Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, 41 different drugs will cost Medicare enrollees less than last year, announced the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

$6 billion for an effort to decarbonize energy-intensive industries

Executive Order to Strengthen the Recognition of Women’s History

Senate confirmed 3 federal judge nominees, total Biden appointees now 190

Week 12

Biden united with Bernie Sanders at the White House to review Democratic efforts to bring down drug prices.

In the wake of the Francis Scott Key Bridge disaster, the federal government has released $60 million in emergency money toward rebuilding so far,and the Administration is working with business and labor unions to keep workers at work and cover lost wages.

$20 billion to help finance tens of thousands of climate and clean energy projects across the country like clean power generation/storage, 0-emission transportation, etc. 70% will be invested in low-income and disadvantaged communities

$20.5 billion in investments in public transportation

$4 billion in tax credits for businesses investing in clean energy, critical materials recycling, and Industrial decarbonization

$1.5 Billion in investments in climate-smart agriculture

Approved the New England Wind offshore wind project- the 8th such offshore wind project approved by the Biden administration

Dept. of interior announced:

$320 Million for tribal water infrastructure

$244 million to deal with legacy pollution from mining in the State of Pennsylvania

$25 million to protect wetlands in Arizona

$19 million to put solar panels over irrigation canals in California, Oregon and Utah

Dept. of Energy announced $27 million for 40 projects by state, local and tribal governments to combat climate change

Week 13

A further 277,000 Americans had student loan debt canceled through the SAVE plan, bringing Biden’s total to 4.3 million people seeing $153 billion of debt canceled so far

Biden announced a plan that would relieve debt for 30 million Americans through steps like automatically canceling debt for eligible public servants instead of them needing to apply.

Announced rules closing gun-show loophole so that all gun sales legally require background checks, even for gun shows or private sales online

EPA published the first ever regulations on PFAS, known as forever chemicals, in drinking water.

Dept. of Commerce announced a deal with microchip giant TSMC to bring billions in investment and manufacturing to Arizona

EPA finalized rules strengthening clean air standards around chemical plants

Dept. of the Interior announced it had beaten the Biden Administration goals when it comes to new clean energy projects

$830 million to support local communities in becoming more climate resilient.

Senate confirmed 3 federal judge nominees, total Biden appointees now 193

Week 14

Dept. of Commerce announced a deal with Samsung to help bring advanced semiconductor manufacturing and research and development to Texas

Dept. of Energy announced it granted New York State $158 million to help support people making their homes more energy efficient

Dept. of Education began the formal process to make President Biden's new Student Loan Debt relief plan a reality

$1 billion dollar collaboration with USAID to buy American grown foods to combat global hunger

food aid will help feed people in Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Haiti, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Yemen

Dept. of Interior announced expansion of four national wildlife refuges to protect 1.13 million acres of wildlife habitat and signed an order protecting parts of the Placitas area sacred to the Pueblo people

announced new workplace safety regulations about the safe amount of silica dust mine workers can be exposed to.

Administration announced its progress in closing the racial wealth gap in America. 

Black Unemployment is the lowest it's ever been since it started being tracked in the 1970s and the gap between white and black unemployment is the smallest it's ever been as well

Black wealth is up 60% over where it was in 2019

The share of black owned businesses doubled between 2019 and 2022 and new black businesses are being created at the fastest rate in 30 years

Since the creation of the Interagency Task Force to combat unfair house appraisals, the likelihood of black homeowners having their homes undervalued compared to whites who own comparable property has dropped by 40% and even disappeared in some states

2023 represented a record breaking $76.2 billion in federal contracts going to small businesses owned by members of minority communities. This was 12% of federal contracts and the President aims to make it 15% for 2025

EPA announced it plans to add PFAS, known as forever chemicals, to the Superfund law

Week 15

Biden with AOC, Bernie Sanders, and Senator Ed Markey announced a program, Solar For All, providing $7 billion aimed at supporting low income households install solar power

New rule raises income cap for required overtime. Before, employers only had to pay overtime to employees earning less than $35,568 a year. Now, the limit is $43,888, and in January 2025 it will be raised again to $58,656

$1 billion dollar program to help replace heavily duty vehicles with clean energy versions

To protect 13 million acres of Alaska wildland and secure the livelihood of Alaska native peoples who rely on it, the administration refused oil and mining rights as well as a 210 mile road across vast areas of northern wilderness

Finalized rules requiring airlines to give automatic cash refunds for canceled flights and other inconveniences

Finalized rules on emissions standards for fuel burning power plants

Security of Transportation Pete Buttigieg attended the ground breaking of a new high speed rail project to connect Los Angeles and Las Vegas, which the administration announced $3 billion to support last year

FCC announced a new rule restoring Net Neutrality

FTC passed finalized regulations to ban non-compete agreements in nearly all cases

$1 billion project to connect tribal communities to safe drinking water

announced plans to protect, restore and reconnect 8 million acres of wetlands and 100,000 miles of rivers and streams

Dept. of Health and Human Services announced a new rule boosting privacy protection for abortions

Harris announced a new rule requiring staffing standards at Nursing Homes across the country

$6 billion deal with tech giant Micron to bring high tech manufacturing to New York

Dept. of Education finalized the most comprehensive federal protections for Trans and other Queer students in the nation's history

Week 16

$3 billion to help replace lead pipes in the drinking water system

Biden canceled the student debt of 317,000 former students of a fraudulent for-profit college system

Biden expanded two California national monuments protecting thousands of acres of land

announced new rules that will require car manufacturers to install automatic braking systems in new cars

IRS announced plans to ramp up audits on the wealthiest Americans

Dept. of Interior announced plans for new offshore wind power

Biden Administration announced new rules to finally allow DACA recipients to be covered by Obamacare

Dept. of Health and Human Services finalized rules that require LGBTQ+ and Intersex minors in the foster care system to be placed in supportive and affirming homes.

Senate confirmed another federal judge lifetime appointment, total Biden appointees now 194. For the first time in history the majority of a President's nominees to the federal bench have not been white men

Week 17

Harris announced 5.5 billion dollars to build affordable housing and address homelessness

At the 3rd meeting of the Los Angeles Declaration group (a partnership between the US and 20 other nations in the Americas), Security of State Blinken announced $578 million in new humanitarian aid to Latin America

Dept. of Energy lead an effort to get the G7 to agree to phase out coal by the early 2030s

Biden announced a major investment deal in Racine, Wisconsin, site of the failed Trump Foxconn deal which promised $13,000 jobs that never materialized, and bulldozed over 100 homes and farms before pulling out of the deal. Biden’s deal with Microsoft will bring in 2,000 new jobs to help replace the 1,000 lost jobs during Trump’s presidency

200 tribal governments and the US territories of American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, published climate action plans paid for by the administration’s Pollution Reduction Grants program

As part of marking Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day), the administration announced several actions as part of their National Strategy To Counter Antisemitism, the first ever national strategy addressing the issue by any administration

USAID announced $220 million in additional humanitarian aid to Yemen

$150 million to help communities fight drought supporting 42 projects across 10 western states

Week 18

Justice Dept. endorses lifting many restrictions on marijuana

Dept. of Interior announced moratorium on new coal mining in America's largest coal producing region, the Powder River Basin in Wyoming and Montana (40% of US coal production)

Harris announced that the administration had broken records by investing $16 billion in Historically Black Colleges and Universities

$30 billion dollars in renewal funding for the Housing Choice Voucher Program

$671.4 million in investments in rural infrastructure to improve electric and safe water utilities in 47 projects across 23 states

HUD announced a record breaking $1.1 billion dollar investment in Tribal housing and community development

$2 billion in investments in America's busiest passenger rail route, the Northeast Corridor between Washington DC and Boston

HUD announced plans to streamline its HOME program to speed up building affordable new homes

$520 million in new water projects to help protect against drought in the western states

Dept.s of Agriculture and HHS have stepped up efforts to wipe out the H5N1 virus prevent its spread to humans while protecting farmers livelihoods

Senate confirmed another 3 federal judge lifetime appointments, total Biden appointees now 197

Bonus: The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that transgender health insurance exclusions were illegal

Week 19

Biden wiped out the student loan debt of 160,000 more Americans, 

After the supreme court struck down Biden’s original broader forgiveness plan, the administration has patchworked different plans together to cancel $167 billion for 4.75 million Americans so far

Dept. of Justice announced it is suing Ticketmaster for being a monopoly

EPA announced $225 million in new funding to improve drinking and wastewater for tribal communities

Will help with testing for forever chemicals, and replacing of lead pipes as well as sustainability projects

$300 million in grants to clean up former industrial sites known as "Brownfield" sites, which will be cleaned and redeveloped into community assets for 200 projects across 178 communities

Announced a historic expansion of the program to feed low income kids over the summer holidays- rolling out SUN Bucks, a $120 per child grocery benefit

Harris builds on her work in Africa to announce a plan to give 80% of Africa internet access by 2030, up from just 40% today

Senate confirmed another 4 federal judge lifetime appointments, total Biden appointees now 201

Biden's Judges have been historically diverse. 64% of them are women and 62% of them are people of color.

Week 20

$900 million to school districts across the country to replace diesel fueled school buses with cleaner alternatives

For the first time the federal government released guidelines for Voluntary Carbon Markets- a system by which companies offset their carbon emissions by funding project to fight climate change like investing in wind or solar power

IRS announced it'll take its direct file program nationwide in 2025 to allow people to file for free through the IRS website instead of paying for programs like TurboTax

White House announced steps to boost nuclear energy in America- the single largest green energy source in the country accounting for 19% of America's total energy. This is a key part of the administration's strategy to reach a carbon free electricity sector by 2035

$824 million in new funding to protect livestock health and combat H5N1 virus to both protect the animals and make sure it doesn't spread to the human population and become another pandemic situation

announced a partnership with 21 states to help supercharge America's aging energy grid

$343 million to update 8 of America's oldest and busiest transportation stations for disability accessibility

$179 million for drought resilience projects in California and Utah and $242 million for expanding water access in California, Colorado and Washington

$150 million for affordable housing for tribal communities

Secretary of State pledged $135 million to help Moldavia, a tiny state bordering Ukraine which has long been dependent on Russian energy, but thanks to US investment is breaking away from Russia and moving forward with EU membership

US and Guatemala launched the "Youth With Purpose” initiative as part of the administration’s efforts to improve life in Central America. The initiative will train 25,000 young Guatemalans and connect them with with service projects throughout the country

Bonus: This week, May 31st 2024, was the last day of the Affordable Connectivity Program which helped 23 million Americans connect to the internet. Despite repeated calls from President Biden Republicans in Congress have refused to act to renew the program

The Biden Administration has invested $90 Billion high-speed internet investments. Such as $42.45 billion for Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment, $1 billion for the The Middle Mile program laying 12,000 miles of regional fiber networks, and distributed nearly 30,000 connected devices to students and communities, including more than 3,600 through the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program

Week 21

$480 million in safety grants to all 50 states, DC, and all the US territories as part of Biden's goal to bring the number of traffic deaths to zero

Thanks to DoT safety actions, deaths involving heavy vehicles dropped by 8% from 2022 to 2023 and the dept. wants to keep pushing till the number is 0

$2.8 billion plan to protect public land and support local government Conservation Efforts for restoring national parks, public land, and historic sites, for funding Bureau of Indian Education-funded schools, and for conservation funding.

Dept. of Transportation announced that it had managed to get customers nearly $1 Billion dollars worth of flight reimbursements

$725 million to clean up legacy coal pollution

$700 million for long-term water conservation projects across the Lower Colorado River Basin

$123 million for fighting Youth Homelessness -- the 8th round of investment in Youth Homelessness totaling $440 million so far. 

Focused on innovative answers, like host homes, and kinship care models, with emphasis on creating equitable strategies to assist youth who are most vulnerable, including BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and youth with disabilities. 

part of administration’s goal of cutting homelessness by 25% by the end of 2025

Dept. of Agriculture announced a series of actions to strength Tribal food sovereignty to support native animal harvesting, the Tribal Forest Protection Act, and serving Indigenous foods in school meal programs

Bonus: the Bidens and Secretaries of Defense and State marked the 80th anniversary of D-Day in Normandy France with a handful of surviving veterans

Week 22

Harris announced that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is moving to remove medical debt for people's credit score, improving the credit rating of up to 15 million Americans

EPA, Dept. of Agriculture, and FDA announced a joint "National Strategy for Reducing Food Loss and Waste and Recycling Organics" aimed to cut food waste by 50% by 2030

Biden signed with Ukrainian President Zelensky a ten-year US-Ukraine Security Agreement to help them win against Russia and meet the standards it will need to be ready for EU and NATO membership after the war

Biden also spearheaded efforts at the G7 meeting to secure $50 billion for Ukraine from the 7 top economic nations

Announced $500 million for the development of new non-injection vaccines against Covid  supporting a clinical trial of 10,000 people testing a vaccine in pill form and two other vaccines administered as nasal sprays

$404 million in additional humanitarian assistance for Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank and the region

$142 million for drought resilience and boosting water supplies which will provide about 40,000 acre-feet of annual recycled water, for about 160,000 people a year in California, Hawaii, Kansas, Nevada and Texas. 

Also supporting 4 water desalination projects in Southern California. Desalination is proving to be an important tool used by countries with limited freshwater

Biden took the lead at the G7 on the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment, a global program to connect the developing world to investment in its infrastructure from the G7 nations. 

Heavy investment in the Lobito Corridor, an economic zone that runs from Angola, through the Democratic Republic of Congo, to Zambia. The PGI has helped connect the 3 nations by rail allowing land-locked Zambia and largely landlocked DRC access to Angolan ports. Also is investing in a $900 million solar farm in Angola, and got a $5 billion dollar investment from Microsoft for expanding digital access in Kenya, Indonesia, and Malaysia. 

Week 23

On the 12th anniversary of President Obama's DACA program President Biden announced a new pathway to legal status and eventual citizenship for Dreamers

Biden also announced protections for the undocumented spouses and children of US citizens

IRS announced that it'll close a tax loophole used by the ultra rich and corporations and believes it'll raise $50 billion in revenue

$850 million to monitor, measure, quantify and reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas sector

Administration took steps to protect the nations Old Growth Forests, greatly restricting any logging against land owned by the federal government

Also touted the $1.4 billion invested in the 20% of America’s forests in urban settings such as parks through Biden’s Investing in America agenda

Released new rules tying government support for clean energy to good paying jobs. To qualify for massive tax credits, companies will have to offer higher wages and better conditions

Announced large reductions in student loan payments, and even a pause for some, starting in July

Biden Administration celebrated the 1 Millionth pension protected under the American Rescue Plan. 

Thanks to the Butch Lewis Act passed in 2021, the government stepped in to secure the pensions of 103,000 Bakery and Confectionery Union workers which were facing a devastating 45% cut- bringing to 1 million the number of workers and retirees whose pensions have been secured by the Biden Administration, which has supported 83 different pension funds, protecting them from an average of 37% cut.

$900 million for the next generation of nuclear power to invest in smaller and more flexible nuclear reactors with smaller footprints

Harris announced a $1.5 billion dollar aid package to Ukraine for repairing the devastated energy sector, emergency infrastructure repair, and humanitarian assistance

$315 million in new food, water, and malnutrition treatment aid for Sudan during their ongoing civil war which has led to nearly apocalyptic conditions in the country. USAID director warned that Sudan could quickly become the largest famine the world has seen since the 1980s when million people died over 2 years in Ethiopia. 

Bonus: Maryland Governor pardoned more than 175,000 people for marijuana convictions, mirroring Biden’s pardoning of people convicted of federal marijuana charges in 2022 and 2023

Week 24

US Surgeon General declared for the first time ever, firearm violence a public health crisis and recommended firearm restrictions

Harris announced the $85 million in first grants to be awarded through a groundbreaking program to remove barriers to building more housing

Under President Biden more housing units are under construction than at any time in the last 50 years. Plans underway to build 2 million affordable housing units and invest $258 billion in housing overall.

Biden pardoned all former US service members convicted under the US Military's ban on gay sex

$1.8 Billion in new infrastructure building across all 50 states, 4 territories and Washington DC, focusing on smaller, often community-oriented projects that span jurisdictions, like repairing damage from permafrost melting in Alaska or electrifying a bus fleet in Maine

$2.7 billion to support domestic sources of nuclear fuel

$127 million to 6 states to help clean up legacy pollution from orphaned oil and gas wells

$469 million to help remove dangerous lead from older homes

Bonus: Biden’s student loan forgiveness hit a snag this week when federal courts in Kansas and Missouri blocked some elements. The Administration also suffered a setback to its efforts to regulate smog causing pollution which were rejected by the conservative majority on the Supreme Court. These legal setbacks underline the importance of courts and the ability to nominate judges and Justices over the next 4 years

Week 25

OSHA is putting forward the first ever federal safety regulation to protect workers from excessive heat in the workplace

 $1 Billion for 656 projects across the country aimed at helping local communities combat climate change fueled disasters like flooding and extreme heat

 flight cancellations at the lowest they've been in a decade

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg credited the Dept.'s new rules requiring automatic refunds for any cancellations or undue delays as driving the good numbers as well as the investment of $25 billion in airport infrastructure that was in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law

$600 million in the 3rd round of funding to reconnect communities divided by highways and other Infrastructure projects over the years, which most often affected racial minorities and poor areas.

The Biden Administration approved its 9th offshore wind power project

$504 million for 12 new Regional Technology and Innovation Hubs which will support high tech manufacturing jobs, as well as training for 21st century jobs for millions of Americans

$200 million to support improved care for older Americans, particularly those with Alzheimer’s and related dementia, by training health care providers in best practices, integrating geriatric training into primary care, and providing education for families and caregivers on supporting aging people.

$176 million to help support the development of a mRNA-based pandemic influenza vaccine

As part of the government's efforts to be ready before the next major pandemic, Moderna is working on an mRNA vaccine focused on the H5 and H7 avian influenza viruses, which experts fear could spread to humans and cause a Covid like event

Week 26

IRS announced it had managed to collect $1 billion in back taxes from high-wealth tax cheats through a program focused on persons with more than $1 million in yearly income who owed more than $250,000 in unpaid taxes. 

Thanks to funding from the Inflation Reduction Act, the IRS is able to undertake more enforcement against rich tax cheats after years of Republicans cutting the agency's budget, which they hope to do again if they win power this election.

$244 million dollar investment in the federal government’s registered apprenticeship program- focused on getting well paying blue collar opportunities to people

Republicans pledge to cut it, even as employers struggle to find qualified workers

$11 billion dollars in grants for the The Hudson River Tunnel- the most complex Infrastructure project in the nation would link New York and New Jersey by rail under the Hudson, improving and speeding connection throughout the Northeast

$1.7 billion to save or reopen auto factories and convert them for electric vehicles, which will save 15,000 skilled union worker jobs, and created 2,900 new high-quality jobs

Dept. of Housing and Urban Development reached a settlement over racial discrimination with the organization responsible for setting standards and qualifications for real estate appraisers, The Appraisal Foundation. 

Black and Latino home owners are far more likely to have their houses under valued than whites. Under the settlement with HUD, TAF (which last year was 94.7% White and 0.6% Black) will have to take serious steps to increase diversity and remove structural barriers to diversity.

Dept. of Justice disrupted an effort by the Russian government to influence public opinion through AI bots, shutting down nearly 1,000 twitter accounts linked to a Russian Bot farm focused on boosting support for Russia’s war against Ukraine.

$1.5 billion to help local authorities buy made in America buses, 80% of which will go toward zero or low-emission technology busses

Biden, Canadian Prime Minister, Finnish President signed agreement on the arctic to boost production of ice breaking ships and counter China’s dominance of that market and Russia's aggressive push into the arctic waters

$1.1 billion for greater rail safety to minimize rail crossings where possible and improve safety measures where not.

$120 million to help tribal communities prepare for climate disasters

$100 million in additional funds to help feed low income kids over the summer

If fully implemented SUN Bucks could help 30 million kids, but many Republican governors have refused the funding.

$100 million to the UN World Food Program to deliver urgently needed food assistance in Gaza. This will bring the total humanitarian aid given by the US to the Palestinian people since the war started in October 2023 to $774 million, the single largest donor nation

Senate confirmed the first Latina judge to serve on the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, bringing the administration’s total judge appointments to 202.

Biden has appointed more black women to federal judgeships, more Hispanic judges, more Asian American judges, and more LGBT judges than any other President, including Obama's full 8 years in office. President Biden has also focused on backgrounds, appointing a record breaking number of former public defenders to judgeships, as well as labor and civil rights lawyers.

Bonus: At the NATO summit in Washington DC President Biden joined 32 allies in the Ukraine compact which confirmed their support for keeping a free and Democratic Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression. World leaders praised President Biden's experience and leadership during the NATO summit

Week 27

Biden announced the cancellation of $1.2 billion dollars worth of student loan debt, canceling the debt of 35,000 public service workers, such as teachers, nurses, and firefighters

After the supreme court struck down Biden’s original broader forgiveness plan, the administration has patchworked different plans together to cancel $168.5 billion for 4.8 million Americans so far

Biden announced actions to lower housing costs, make more housing available and called on Congress to prevent rent hikes

The plan calls for landlords who raise the rent by more than 5% a year to face losing major important tax benefits, the average rent has gone up by 21% since 2021

Also told federal agencies to see how unused property could be used for housing

Bureau of Land Management plans on building 15,000 affordable housing units on public land in southern Nevada

 USPS is examining 8,500 unused properties across America to be repurposed for housing

HHS is finalizing a new rule to make it easier to use federal property to house the homeless

Calling on lower levels of Gov to do so as well

$5 billion to replace or restore major bridges across the country

Executive Order aimed at boosting Latino college attendance through allowing institutions with 25% or more Latino students to more easily take advantage of federal programs and expand their reach to better serve students and boost Hispanic enrollment nationwide

$325 million in grants for housing and community development in 7 cities which have collectively pledged to develop over 6,500 new mixed-income units, including replacing 2,677 severely distressed public housing units. The cities will invest $2.65 billion – so that every $1 in HUD funds will generate $8.65 in additional resources

Biden took extensive new actions on immigration 

Allowing foreign born spouses and step children of American citizens without legal status to apply for it without having to leave the country

Easing Visa rules to allow Dreamers to get work visas to give them legal status and a pathway to citizenship

New rule expanding the federal TRIO program (which supports low-income and first generation college students transition from high school to college) to cover Dreamers

Plans to double number of immigration lawyers available to those going through immigration court

$160 million in grants to support Clean U.S. Manufacturing of Steel and Other Construction Materials

$203 million in humanitarian assistance for the people of Sudan where 25 million people are facing acute food insecurity due to war

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau put forward a new rule that would better regulate popular paycheck advance products to require lenders to tell customers up front about any and all fees and charges, as well as cracking down on deceptive "tipping" options

Week 28

$4.3 billion in Climate Pollution Reduction Grants to support community-driven solutions to fight climate change, and accelerate America’s clean energy transition

Administration announced a plan to phase out the federal government's use of single use plastics in food service operations, events, and packaging by 2027, and from all federal operations by 2035

White House hosted a summit on super pollutants with the goals of better measuring them and dramatically reducing them

$325 million in grants for climate justice, funded by the Inflation Reduction Act, 

to help weatherize and energy-efficiency upgrade homes for 35 tribes, to install onsite wastewater treatment systems throughout 17 Black Belt counties in Alabama, to support urban forestry, expanding tree canopy in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, and more 

Dept. of Interior approved 3 new solar projects on public land

Pledged $667 million to global Pandemic Fund to support Pandemic prevention, and readiness in low income nations who can't do it on their own

$240 million investment in tribal fisheries in the Pacific Northwest

IRS announced that thanks to funding from President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act, it'll be able to digitize much of its operations allowing taxpayers to retrieve all their tax related information from one source

IRS also announced that New Jersey will be joining the direct file program in 2025. In 2024 140,000 Americans were able to file this way, they collectively saved $5.6 million in tax preparation fees, claiming $90 million in returns

Republicans in Congress lead by Congressmen Adrian Smith of Nebraska and Chuck Edwards of North Carolina have put forward legislation to do away with direct file

Bonus: American law enforcement arrested co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel, Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada

Week 29

Biden announced his plan to reform the Supreme Court and make sure no President is above the law. After the conservative majority ruled Trump has "absolute immunity" from any prosecution for "official acts" while president, Biden called for a constitutional amendment clarifying that presidents aren’t above the law

In response to a wide ranging corruption scandal involving Justice Clarence Thomas, Biden also called on Congress to pass a legally binding code of ethics for the Supreme Court, and endorsed the idea of term limits for the Justices

Biden Administration sent out an email to everyone who has a federal student loan informing them of upcoming debt relief options, mostly targeting run-away interest or those who have been making payments for over 20 years

Announced that the federal government would step in and protect the pension of 600,000 Teamsters, just the latest in a number of such pension protections the President has done in office.

Biden and Harris oversaw the dramatic release of American hostages from Russia in the largest prisoner exchange in post-soviet history at 24 people

A new Biden Administration rule banning discrimination against LGBT students takes effect, but faces major Republican resistance and lawsuits delaying implementation in red states

$2 billion to black and minority farmers who were the victims of historic discrimination and were improperly denied the loans they needed

Biden Administration took an important step to stop the criminalization of poverty by changing child safety guidelines so that poverty alone isn't grounds for taking a child into foster care

Administration agreed to a plan by the Democratic Governor of North Carolina to forgive the medical debt of 2 million people in the state (which has the 3rd highest medical debt in the nation)

Dept. of Transportation put forward a new rule requiring airlines to seat parents next to their children, with no extra cost

$3.5 billion to combat homelessness in grants to local organizations and programs

Pennsylvania and New Mexico would be joining the IRS' direct file program for 2025\

Bonus: President Biden welcomed families of released hostages into the oval office to call their loved ones on the plane home [video in week 29 post]

Week 30

$325 million to support State, territorial, DC, and tribal governments in buying new land for parks and outdoor recreation sites and the expansion and refurbishment of existing sites

$171 million to update and replace Birmingham, Alabama’s aging water system and remove all lead pipes

$2.2 billion in investments in the national power grid to help boost resiliency in the face of extreme weather

Justice Dept. won its massive antitrust case against Google, ruling it an illegal monopoly

Also has ongoing antitrust suits against Apple, while the Federal Trade Commission is suing Facebook and Amazon for their monopolist practices

$3.9 billion in direct aid to Ukraine to make up for massive budget shortfalls caused by the war with Russia. 

To help pay teachers, emergency workers, and other public employees, as well helping displaced persons, low-income families, and people with disabilities

$190 million to improve air quality and energy upgrades in K-12 schools

$424 million in additional humanitarian aid to the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Due to ongoing conflict and food insecurity, 25 million Congolese are in need of humanitarian aid

Senate confirmed 3 federal judge nominees, total Biden appointees now 205

Week 31

Announced the successful conclusion of the first negotiations between Medicare and pharmaceutical companies over drug prices. Savings on these first ten drugs are between 38% and 79% and will collectively save seniors $1.8 billion dollars in out of pocket costs

For years Medicare was not allowed to directly negotiate prices with drug companies leaving seniors to pay high prices. Thanks to Inflation Reduction Act, passed with no Republican support, this long time Democratic goal is now a reality

This is on top of capping insulin costs at $35/month and all out of pocket drug costs at $2,000 a year starting for Medicare recipients

Administration launched crackdown of companies wasting consumer time

Proposed rules that require companies to make canceling a subscription or service as easy as signing up for it

Requiring automatic refunds for canceled flights

Working on rules to require companies to allow customers to speak to a real person with just one button click

Working on rules around chatbots, particularly their use from banks

Working on rules to ban companies from posting fake reviews, suppressing honest negative reviews, or paying for positive reviews

Taking steps to require insurance companies to allow health claims to be submitted online

The Bidens announced further funding as part of the President's Cancer Moonshot which aims to cut the number of cancer deaths in half over the next 25 years

Harris announced a plan to lower housing costs- offering $25,000 to first time buyers for down-payments, building of 3 million more housing units, and $40 billion innovation fund to spur innovative housing construction- all in addition to Biden's calls for a $10,000 tax credit for first time buyers and to punish landlords who raise the rent by over 5%

Biden Designates a national monument at the site of the 1908 Springfield Race Riot, where thousands of white residents destroyed black homes and businesses and 17 people died. As a direct result of the riot, black community leaders and white allies met a few months later in New York and founded the NAACP

$775 million to help cap and clean up orphaned oil and gas wells

Harris announced plans to ban price-gouging in the food and grocery industries

In response to this pressure from Democrats on price gouging, the supermarket giant Kroger proposed dropping prices by a billion dollars

Week 32

$521 million to help increase the number of electric vehicle charging ports

Dept. of The Interior announced the first ever lease for off-shore wind power in Oregon

Finalized the protection of 28 million acres of public lands across Alaska

$558 Million for improving maternal health

Announced that Maine will join the IRS' Direct File program for tax year 2025 which allows taxpayers to file, for free, simple returns with the IRS instead of paying for services like TurboTax

Week 33

$7.3 billion in clean energy investment for rural communities

Administration announced a historic 10th offshore wind project, this one in Maryland

Executive Order aimed at supporting and expanding unions directing all federal agencies to take steps to recognize unions, not interfere with the formation of unions and reach labor agreements on federally supported projects

$1 billion to make local roads safer to 354 local communities across America to improve roadway safety and prevent deaths and serious injuries

Since National Roadway Safety Strategy launched in 2022 traffic fatalities have decreased for 9 straight quarters

$430 million to support America's aging hydropower- most dams were built in the New Deal Era, and need to be updated for safety

$300 million to help support tribal nations, and US territories cut climate pollution and boost green energy

investing $179 million in literacy to help support states research, develop, and implement evidence-based literacy interventions to help students achieve key literacy milestones

US government secured the release of 135 political prisoners from Nicaragua jailed by the dictator there since political protests started in 2018

Justice Dept. announced the disruption of a major effort by Russia to interfere with the 2024 US Elections. A Russian propaganda network spent $10 million to help spread Russian propaganda and help sway the election in favor of Trump and the Republicans as well as disrupting American society

Harris outlined her plan for Small Businesses at a campaign stop in New Hampshire- she wants to expand from $5,000 to $50,000 tax incentives for startup expenses which would help 25 million new small businesses over 4 years

Week 34

Biden marked the 30th anniversary of the passage of the Violence Against Women Act (which was written by him as a senator). He announced $690 million in grants to support survivors of gender-based violence.

Announced a new rule to force insurance companies to treat mental health care the same as medical care

Announced that 50 million Americans, 1 in every 7, have gotten health insurance through Obamacare's marketplaces

IRS announced that it has recovered $1.3 billion in back taxes from wealthy tax dodgers. The Inflation Reduction Act funded the IRS to chase high income tax cheats, which Republicans have been underfunding for years to hinder the ability to make the wealthy pay their fair share. IRS has collected over a Billion Dollars in back taxes from the richest Americans, so far this year

Dept. of The Interior and White House Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi highlighted the 41 renewable energy projects approved on public land by the administration

$236 million to help fight forest fires and restore landscapes damaged by recent wildfires

$157 million in wetland conservation focused on protecting bird habitats

Senate confirmed 4 federal judge nominees, total Biden appointees now 209

Week 35

$1.3 billion in new funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities which have proven to be far better at boosting the long term economic prospects of graduates than non-HBCU colleges. Bulk of funding will go directly to helping students afford college.

Dept. of Transportation celebrated 60,000 infrastructure projects funding by the Biden-Harris Bipartisan Infrastructure Law

From major multi-state projects to small town railway crossings every project was lead by a local community in need not a make-work project dreamed up in Washington

Over $3 billion to support the battery sector in 25 projects across 14 states supporting over 12,000 jobs

Maine and Rhode Island both launched a partnership with the federal government to help save low income families money on their utility bills

$156 million to help bring solar power to low-income New Mexico residents as part of the "Solar for All" project to help low-income people afford the switch over to solar power

Announced the first ever leases for wind power in the Gulf of Maine

Senate confirmed 2 federal district judges and 1 appointment to the Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, total Biden appointees now 212

Week 36

Announced new actions to curb gun violence at the one year anniversary of the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention such as an Executive Order combating machine gun conversion devices, 3-D printed guns, and addresses active shooter drills at schools

One year anniversary of the American Climate Corps has seen 15,000 young people connected to well paid jobs in climate resilience. A new Environmental Justice Climate Corps program was announced which will connect 250 American Climate Corps members with local communities and help them achieve environmental justice projects

Announced that 4.2 million small business owners and self-employed people get their health insurance through the ACA marketplace. The self-employed are 3 times as likely as other Americans to use the marketplaces for their insurance

Pressed freight railroad companies to close the gap and offer paid sick time to all their employees. Under Biden's leadership the number of Class I freight railroad workers with paid sick days increased from 5% to 90%. Now he is pushing to get it for the last 10%.

$965 million to help school districts buy clean energy buses

The administration took another step in its historic efforts to protect the Colorado River System by signing 5 water conservation agreements with local water authorities in California and Arizona conserving over 717,000 acre-feet of water by 2026

$254 million to help support local parks, the largest such investment in history

$1.5 billion to help combat opioid addiction and prevent opioid overdose deaths

$466.5 million in food assistance and development worldwide this year, including helping to feed 1.2 million children and helping 200,000 farmers shift to climate-smart agriculture in low-income countries

First Lady announced at UN meeting a partnership with USAID and UNICEF to end childhood exposure to lead worldwide

Senate approved another federal judge, total Biden appointees now 213

Week 37

Biden and Harris have led the federal response to Hurricane Helene earning praise from both Republican and Democratic local leaders. Thousands of federal workers have given out over 8 million meals, and 7 million liters of water. Harris announced the federal government will reimburse state and local government 100% of the costs from Helene

A strike by the International Longshoremen’s Association, that briefly shut down ports, ended in a tentative deal to give them a 62% raise, after Biden directed the Secretary of Transportation to take the lead pressuring management to make a deal with the workers

Harris announced new actions to help those struggling with medical debt- 

Requiring debt collectors to confirm debts are valid and accurate before engaging in collection actions

Cracking down on debt collectors that collect on debt that is not owed by patients

DoD announced that it was reducing pricing for civilians who get medical treatment at DoD hospitals

Crack down on tax-exempt hospitals who are required by law to offer financial assistance but often do not

$62 Billion in infrastructure funding for 2025 for roads, bridges, high speed rail, ports, airports, and high speed internet

$1 Billion dollars of investment in America's passenger rail future to help expand and modernize intercity passenger rail nationwide. (Coming on top of $8.2 billion in investments announced in December 2023)

$2.8 billion joint project between Dept.s of Energy and Agriculture to bring 100% carbon pollution-free energy to the rural Midwest

IRS announced that 30 million Americans, across 24 states will qualify for free direct filing of their taxes in 2025

$7.7 billion in funding for Climate-Smart Practices on Agricultural Lands

$1.5 billion in investments in transmission infrastructure to help ensure our grid is reliable and resilient

Week 38

Biden announced a new EPA rule that will require all lead pipes in America's drinking water systems to be replace within 10 years

Harris plans to expand Medicare to cover home health care. Currently long term care is only covered by Medicaid, the health program for the poor, so people must spend all their savings before they can qualify. This would allow more seniors to stay in their homes and would be a gamechanger for disabled Americans, who also get coverage from Medicare

Medicare released a preliminary list of 101 generic drugs which it would cover that would cost $2 or less for a month for enrollees. Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, Medicare will be allowed to pay for generic drugs, which was long resisted by drug companies

Administration’s Domestic Policy Advisor announced they had blown past goal of hiring 250,000 student support staff for 2024, with 320,000 tutors, mentors, student success coaches, postsecondary transition coaches, and support coordinators nationwide

$420 million to help get rid of lead paint and other lead hazards from homes

Week 39

Announced they had forgiven the student loan debt of 1 million public sector workers through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness, which was passed in 2007 but almost impossible to access until the Biden Administration’s overhauls

Federal Trade Commission finalizes its "one-click to cancel" rule which requires businesses to make it as easy to cancel a subscription as it was to sign up for it

Announced there are 1.7 million more construction and manufacturing jobs and 700,000 more jobs in the transportation sector since the start of the administration, and 400,000 more union workers than in 2021. 

60,000 Infrastructure projects across the nation have been funded by the Biden-Harris Bipartisan Infrastructure Law

$2 billion to protect the U.S. power grid against growing threats of extreme weather

$125 million to help upgrade older diesel engines to low or zero-emission solutions

Dept. of The Interior and State of California broke ground on the Salton Sea Species Conservation Habitat Project restoring and protecting a total of 5,000 acres of land in California’s largest lake

$900 Million in investment in next generation nuclear power, developing smaller lighter reactors which in theory should be easier to deploy

The federal government took two big steps to increase the rights of Alaska natives. 

The Departments of The Interior and Agricultural finalized an agreement to strengthen Alaska Tribal representation on the Federal Subsistence Board

Dept. of Interior  signed 3 landmark co-stewardship agreements with Alaska Native Tribes

$860 million to help support solar energy in Puerto Rico

Dept. of Interior announced it had approved the Fervo Cape Geothermal Power Project, a major step forwards towards geothermal energy of public lands and the goal of a carbon pollution-free power sector by 2035

Bonus: Biden meets with a Kindergarten Teacher whose student loans were forgiven this week [video in week 39 link]

Week 40

Biden issued the first presidential apology on behalf of the federal government to America's Native American population for the Indian boarding school policy

Proposed a new rule which would make contraceptive medication (the pill) free over the counter with most Insurance

EPA announced its finalized rule strengthening standards for lead paint dust in pre-1978 housing and child care facilities. The new standards set the lowest level of lead particle that can be identified by a lab as the standard for requiring lead remediation

$50 million dollar fine against American Airlines for its treatment of disabled passengers and their wheelchairs. Half the fine will go to replacing such damaged wheelchairs

Biden administration has leveled a historic # of fines against airlines ($225 million) for their failures. Also published an Airline Passengers with Disabilities Bill of Rights, passed a rule on accessible lavatories on aircraft, and is drafting a rule to make airlines replace lost or damaged wheelchairs with equal equipment at once

$430 million dollars to help boost domestic clean energy manufacturing in former coal communities in 15 different towns

$4.2 billion in new infrastructure investment for 44 projects across the country

$200 million to replace aging natural gas pipes saving the average consumer over $900 on gas bills and removing 1,000 metric tons of methane pollution, annually

$244 million to address legacy pollution in Pennsylvania coal country

Data shows that President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act (passed with Vice-President Harris' tie breaking vote) has saved seniors $1 billion dollars on out-of-pocket drug costs by capping yearly out of pocket costs and allowing generic drugs and price negotiation

Announced new proposed rule to bring student debt relief for 8 million struggling borrowers

Despite roadblocks from Republicans at all levels, the administration has managed to bring student loan forgiveness to 5 million Americans so far through different programs patchworked together. The new proposed rule to bring it to 8 million more can’t be finalized before 2025, so the election will decide its fate

$1.5 billion in 92 partner-driven conservation projects aimed at making farming more sustainable and environmentally friendly

What Joe Biden and Kamala Harris did in 2024.

I started this project back in January and for most of a year, every week, I came up with the highlights of what the Biden-Harris Administration did. I did it because it felt to me our media and national conversion was broken, our government was doing huge things that it felt like almost no one knew about. It's amazing how often I struggled to find a single news source that wanted to cover a huge life changing project.

This is the last Friday before Election Day, and if you haven't already voted, take a minute to go back and look at the last 40 weeks, and decide, do you like these things or want literally the reverse on every issue.

Week 1 January 19th

Week 2 January 26th

Week 3 February 2nd

Week 4 February 9th

Week 5 February 16th

Week 6 February 23rd

Week 7 March 1st

Week 8 March 8th

Week 9 March 15th

Week 10 March 22nd

Week 11 March 29th

Week 12 April 5th

Week 13 April 12th

Week 14 April 19th

Week 15 April 26th

Week 16 May 3rd

Week 17 May 10th

Week 18 May 18th

Week 19 May 24th

Week 20 May 31st

Week 21 June 7th

Week 22 June 14th

Week 23 June 21st

Week 24 June 28th

Week 25 July 5th

Week 26 July 12th

Week 27 July 19th

Week 28 July 26th

Week 29 August 2nd

Week 30 August 9th

Week 31 August 16th

Week 32 August 30th

Week 33 September 6th

Week 34 September 13th

Week 35 September 20th

Week 36 September 27th

Week 37 October 4th

Week 38 October 11th

Week 39 October 18th

Week 40 October 25th

Feel free to reblog this or go back and reblog a favorite, one that impacts your life or the one from the week of your birthday, whatever.

and remember to read past the headlines and dig to find out what your government is up to, it might shock you how much is happening that no one talks about.

[greenfue]

UN climate negotiations through the years to COP29

This year’s U.N. climate conference in Baku, Azerbaijan, marks the world’s 29th leadership gathering to confront global warming since the first “Conference of the Parties” in 1995. Here are some of the most significant moments in the history of climate talks: 1800s – For about 6,000 years before the industrial era, global levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) remained around 280 parts per…

[maryse127]

Our new secretary of (among other things) developmental aid is a racist that has suggested stopping developmental aid in the past.

[govtshutdown]

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-03-20/speaker-touts-gop-wins-on-migrant-detention-in-funding-deal

Bloomberg will make you pay to read the whole thing, but here's the salient text:

“Speaker Mike Johnson on Wednesday promoted a funding boost for migrant detention and cuts to diversity and climate programs to try to sell his restive Republican conference on a $1 trillion spending deal.” “The Republican leader told reporters he plans to hold a vote Friday on the still-secret text of the spending package, which he negotiated with the White House and Democratic congressional leaders.”

[trendynewsnow]

Greenwashing Accusations Surround COP29 in Azerbaijan

As predictably as sea levels rise with increasing emissions, accusations of “greenwashing” have emerged following the announcement of Azerbaijan as the host for the upcoming annual UN climate summit, COP29. With the event approaching later this month, these criticisms have only intensified. At the core of these allegations lies a simplified narrative: that Azerbaijan believes it can obscure its…

[newsbites]

News from Belize

The Christian Workers Union and the Port of Belize are back at the negotiating table to discuss the CWU's "one gang, one ship" demand for sugar ship systems.

2. Self-proclaimed activist and businessman, Yhony Rosado, says he is taking the government to court after his name was allegedly slandered by the Commissioner of Police over his ownership of a VW Atlas. The police claim the vehicle is stolen. Rosado says the car was sold to him, after being driven down from the US, with all the necessary and proper paperwork.

3. Rural communities are struggling with water supply, from Toledo to the North to the West.

4. The Ministry of Health and Wellness has honoured nurses for their service

[reportwire]

High Seas Treaty secured after marathon UN talks

More than 100 countries reached agreement on a United Nations treaty to protect the high seas, following marathon talks at U.N. headquarters in New York that ended late Saturday. The High Seas Treaty will put 30 percent of the planet’s seas into protected areas by 2030, aiming to safeguard marine life. “This is a massive success for multilateralism. An example of the transformation our world…