Voters love this climate policy they’ve never heard of (original) (raw)

Illustration by Samantha Harrrington. (Photo credit: EV, Jason Lawrence / CC BY 2.0 DEED; Heat pump, Phyxter Home Services / CC BY 2.0 DEED)

The Inflation Reduction Act is the Biden administration’s signature climate law and the largest U.S. government investment in reducing climate pollution to date. Among climate advocates, the policy is well-known and celebrated, but beyond that, only a minority of Americans have heard much about it.

Once voters learn a bit about this landmark law, however, a large majority support it.

These findings are from a survey of U.S. registered voters, conducted jointly by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication (the publisher of this site) and the Center for Climate Change Communication at George Mason University.

In the nationally representative survey, participants were first asked if they’d heard about the Inflation Reduction Act. Only 39% of participants said they’d heard either “a lot” or “some” information about it. Surprisingly, the number of people who had heard about the law remains unchanged from one year ago, even as the legislation has begun to spur a surge in U.S. manufacturing of batteries, solar panels, and automobiles — and has helped consumers make energy-saving purchases.

Next, survey participants read a short description of the Inflation Reduction Act:

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) aims to curb inflation by reducing the federal deficit, lowering prescription drug prices and the cost of health insurance, modernizing the Internal Revenue Service, and investing in U.S. clean energy production. The law authorizes $391 billion for developing clean energy and addressing global warming, including tax incentives and rebates to help consumers and businesses buy energy-efficient appliances, solar panels, electric vehicles, etc. The IRA also includes support for clean energy jobs and investments in communities that are most harmed by air and water pollution. It is the largest investment the U.S. government has ever made to reduce global warming, and it is projected to help the U.S. reduce its carbon pollution 40% by 2030. The law will be paid for by closing tax loopholes.

After reading a summary of the law, about three-quarters of surveyed voters (74%) said they support it. In other words, voters haven’t heard much about this policy, but when they do, they like it. (It’s possible that some voters have heard about the benefits of the IRA but didn’t attribute them to the law.)

Read: Checklist: How to take advantage of new clean energy tax credits

Republicans are divided on the Inflation Reduction Act

In today’s political environment, voters’ opinions on just about everything hinge on their political worldview, and that’s been especially true with climate and energy. But the survey results show an atypical divide.

In this case, it’s Republicans who are split. Like Democrats, moderate and liberal Republicans are largely supportive of the Inflation Reduction Act, with seven out of 10 moderate and liberal Republicans expressing a favorable opinion of it. This number has grown by 13 percentage points over the past year. Conservative Republicans are a notable outlier, with just 30% supporting the law.

Despite the intraparty split in the GOP, the cluster of data points near the top of this graph shows that much of the public is already on board with measures to cut climate pollution and save energy.

The law is helping boost American manufacturing and energy innovation and has been especially beneficial to red states. In 2023, over 3.4 million U.S. households took advantage of tax credits for energy efficiency and residential clean energy, totaling $8.4 billion in savings for consumers. Other results from the survey show that these elements of the Inflation Reduction Act enjoy solid bipartisan support.

The findings could be a boost to policymakers, communicators, advocates, and regular people who want to help spread the word about the benefits of investing in modern energy and preparing for a climate-changed world – and how these measures are helping people and communities.

Solving climate change is hard, but it’s a lot easier when it’s popular.

Learn more about the Inflation Reduction Act: Experts: Senate-passed bill will yield myriad climate benefits

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Karin Kirk is a geologist, science writer, and professional ski instructor from Bozeman, Montana. Her writing spans topics from Earth science to EVs and often is centered around data-rich visualizations... More by Karin Kirk