Ceres applauds U.S. House leaders for bill to keep U.S. in the Paris Agreement

BOSTON — The sustainability nonprofit organization Ceres applauds the U.S. House of Representatives for bringing to a vote a new bill aimed at keeping the U.S. as a participant in the historic Paris Agreement on climate change. This will be the first climate bill to be voted on in the U.S. House in the last 10 years.

“This will be a pivotal moment for policy action on climate change in Washington,” said Anne Kelly, vice president of government relations at Ceres.

On Thursday, the U.S. House is expected to vote on the Climate Action Now Act (H.R. 9). The bill, introduced by Rep. Kathy Castor (D-FL) in March, would prevent federal dollars from being used to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement. It would also require the federal government to develop a plan to meet the greenhouse gas emissions reductions goals under the historic accord.

In 2017, the Trump administration announced its intent to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement, becoming the only nation in the world planning to leave the global pact in 2020.

“We applaud the many congressional leaders that are taking a stand on the greatest challenge of our time and joining the thousands of U.S. investors and companies doing their part to ensure the U.S. is ‘still in’ on our commitment to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement,” added Kelly. “Investors and companies have been calling on U.S. leaders to remain in the Paris Agreement because they know it is essential to keep America competitive and keep the economy thriving as the rest of the world transitions to a zero-carbon economy. It is great to see so many House lawmakers heed their call with the Climate Action Now Act.”

The bill now has over 225 co-sponsors, ensuring more than enough votes to pass off the floor of the U.S. House. Last week, the Ceres BICEP Network called for bipartisan support for H.R. 9, urging lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to vote in favor of keeping the U.S. in the Paris Agreement

The bill will be the focus of a plenary session this week at the Ceres Conference 2019 at The Westin in San Francisco. Kelly will lead a discussion at 3:30 p.m. PT on Wednesday, May 1 with former Congressman Carlos Curbelo (R-FL) on the state of climate and clean energy policy. The session is open to the public.

About Ceres

Ceres is a sustainability nonprofit organization working with the most influential investors and companies to build leadership and drive solutions throughout the economy. For more information, visit www.ceres.org and follow @CeresNews.