The Unbelievably Big Bad Bill Hurts IRA Incentives And Red States

Last Updated on: 16th June 2025, 04:48 pm

We now live in a nation where everything political is referred to by a HUGE size, and now BIG losses are projected for key clean energy initiatives contained within the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). The Unbelievably BIG Bad Bill (aka “One BIG Beautiful Bill Act,” or OBBBA) is threatening the livelihoods of citizens across the US, and in red states particularly, as that’s where the IRA provided significant funding for clean energy infrastructure projects.

On May 22, the House Ways and Means Committee sent out a press release.

“American families, farmers, workers, and small businesses will soon see a massive surge in economic growth, wage gains, and higher incomes thanks to President Trump’s One, Big, Beautiful Bill which passed the US House of Representatives today and now heads to the Senate for consideration.”

That’s a whole lotta horse pucky.

Under the proposed bill, tax credits for cleaner cars will end in 2025, with incentives for wind, solar, and nuclear energy projects scaled down and then eliminated by 2032.

Trump has lashed out against renewable energy and endowed the Department of the Interior to temporarily suspend all clean energy development on federal land. Oil and gas exploration is okay, though. Trump has also attacked solar, which is the fastest-growing energy source in the US. “You know what people also don’t like, those massive solar fields built over land that cover 10 miles by 10 miles,” Trump said. “I mean they are ridiculous, the whole thing.”

Trump’s statements about renewables, of course, don’t reflect the reality of their impacts on US energy or popular support for solar energy. Clean energy in the US had a record-breaking year in 2024.

• The US added 47% more clean energy capacity in 2024 than in 2023.
• 95% of capacity added in 2024 was carbon-free; solar and batteries made up 83% of new capacity.
• Annual solar capacity additions rose by 65% in 2024

Private companies had announced $208.8 billion in investments in US electric vehicle (EV) and battery manufacturing. More than three-quarters of all investments were either under construction or operational as of October 2024. These investments were associated with more than 240,000 manufacturing jobs. A total of 78% of such spending has gone to Republican-held suburban and rural districts across the US.

But thanks to the Trump administration’s transactional relationship with Big Oil, since January, businesses have canceled or delayed more than $14 billion in clean energy and electric vehicle investments that resulted from the IRA legislation.

Trump and his coterie of sycophants don’t care about the ripple effects of their clean energy hatred. Trump thinks mitigating a warming world amounts to a “giant scam.” His grandiose visions require manipulation of budgetary and tax priorities — which could be the trigger to set back the nation’s climate goals by years and threaten hundreds of billions of dollars in clean energy investments.

Jesuit Father Thomas Reese writes in the National Catholic Reporter that the OBBBA “is going to be a disaster for America.”

Now more than 600 GW of clean energy capacity is at risk of cancellation. To put this in perspective, that’s equivalent to building 600 large power plants, or roughly half of America’s entire current electricity generation capacity. The potential results of clean energy capacity losses are far-reaching.

• Wholesale electricity prices would rise by 50% by 2035 if the bill becomes law, so individuals and businesses would see significant rate increases.
• The US would note be able to compete with China to develop AI without adequate electricity generation capacity.
• Jobs across the country would be lost in the solar, wind, and battery storage industries.
• Less equipment would be purchased for clean energy manufacturing facilities.

Robbie Orvis, senior director at Energy Innovation, is incensed. “You can’t overstate how significant this will be in weakening the US’s position. With inflation, tariffs, and rising electricity use, it really couldn’t come at a worse time. It’s a really damaging bill.”

The Dilemma of Clean Energy Prosperity Loss from IRA Slashes

Many Republican legislators find themselves in a conundrum. Their constituents like the millions of dollars in clean energy spending and jobs that have come as a godsend to their states. However, their fearful megalomaniac executive branch leader wants full loyalty, which includes eliminating key incentives for renewables. It is as if we are in Brobdingnag, Jonathan Swift’s 1726 fictitious land where the country is far more dangerous for people of normal human size.

Of the 20 congressional districts that have attracted the most clean energy manufacturing investment since the IRA passed in 2022, 18 are represented by Republicans. The top three districts, in North Carolina, Georgia, and Nevada, represented by Richard Hudson, Earl Carter, and Mark Amodei, respectively, have collectively seen nearly $30 billion in new investments since the IRA legislation.

The nation’s well-established onshore wind industry, built out over several decades, is generating nearly 11% of America’s electricity, making it the largest source of renewable energy and at times last year exceeding coal-fired generation. There currently are about 1,500 onshore wind farms — on which more than 75,600 turbines are spinning — across 45 states, led by Texas, Iowa, Oklahoma, Illinois and Kansas. Virtually all of the wind farms are located on private land, and many of the largest ones are owned and operated by major energy companies,

Thirteen House Republicans are urging Senate leaders to “substantially and strategically” improve clean energy tax credit provisions in the House-passed megabill. Representative Jen Kiggans (R-VA) has led a group of twelve other lawmakers to speak out about their deep concern over several provisions in the OBBBA. In particular, loss of incentives and strict new supply chain requirements are standing out for lawmakers as Senate negotiators work on their version of the GOP’s tax cut, energy, and border spending budget package.

The Republican plan is among the bills projected to benefit the highest-income group while hurting the lowest. The 2022 IRA was the opposite: the bottom 20% of the population gained, while the top 20% of the population lost.

Conservative organization Texans for Energy Innovation has revealed the results of their biennial survey. It shows that Texans back enhancements to the transmission grid and a continued preference for an “all of the above” energy strategy — Texans want to utilize all available sources to meet their growing needs. Of those polled, 72% are in favor of renewables, with 60% of Republicans having a positive view of renewables. They say that renewable energy sources:

• help the economy and create jobs (85% overall; 81% of Republicans, 79% of Independents);
• improve reliability of the electric grid (85% overall; 79% of Republicans, 82% of Independents);
• increase customer choice (84% overall; 77% of Republicans, 87% of Independents); and,
• result in cheaper energy (62% overall; 53% of Republicans, 70% of Independents).

The BlueGreen Alliance conducted an analysis of the potential impacts of the policies in the House bill on the employment footprint of manufacturing and found that repealing the clean manufacturing tax credits puts over two million jobs at risk.

Will the news of lost jobs and rising energy costs prompt Trump to do one of his famous TACO dances about repealing clean energy credits? In the meantime, the uncertainty is weakening investments in clean energy.