WASHINGTON — Jillian Blanchard, Vice President of Climate Change & Environmental Justice at Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG), issued the following statement in response to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit granting en banc review in litigation challenging the termination of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF), a $20 billion Congressionally authorized clean energy and climate resilience program:
““The D.C. Circuit’s decision to grant en banc review is a major inflection point in the fight for affordable energy, climate resilience, and the rule of law. For months, the administration has tried to dismiss these funds as waste while families across the country are paying record electricity bills and struggling to keep the lights on. ”
“The Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund was designed to deliver cheaper, homegrown energy, backup power, and real resilience where it’s needed most — lowering costs for everyday people and strengthening communities before disaster strikes. This funding was built to keep energy bills down for Americans who are already stretched thin and to build critical markets to support these projects.
“Full-court review is relatively rare, and the fact that the court expressly cited L4GG’s amicus brief on behalf of 40 Members of Congress underscores how serious the constitutional and statutory issues are here. Nearly $20 billion lawfully appropriated by Congress is at stake, and this case will determine whether an administration can simply override Congress’s spending decisions by fiat, eroding a basic principle of our democracy.”
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Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG) coordinates large-scale pro bono programs and issue advocacy efforts to protect human rights, defend the environment, and ensure equal justice under the law, and has a network of 125,000+ lawyers to assist in its efforts. lawyersforgoodgovernment.org.