January 24, 2025
Mr. Schneider (for himself, Mr. Huffman, Mr. Meeks, Ms. Ansari, Ms. Adams, Mr. Amo, Mr. Auchincloss, Ms. Barragán, Mrs. Beatty, Mr. Bera, Mr. Beyer, Ms. Bonamici, Mr. Boyle of Pennsylvania, Ms. Brown, Ms. Brownley, Ms. Budzinski, Mr. Carbajal, Mr. Carter of Louisiana, Mr. Casten, Ms. Castor of Florida, Mr. Castro of Texas, Ms. Chu, Mr. Cisneros, Ms. Clarke of New York, Mr. Cleaver, Mr. Clyburn, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Connolly, Mr. Correa, Mr. Costa, Mr. Courtney, Ms. Crockett, Mr. Crow, Ms. Davids of Kansas, Ms. DeGette, Ms. DeLauro, Mr. DeSaulnier, Ms. Dexter, Mrs. Dingell, Mr. Doggett, Ms. Escobar, Ms. Elfreth, Ms. Leger Fernandez, Mrs. Fletcher, Mr. Foster, Mrs. Foushee, Mr. Garamendi, Mr. García of Illinois, Mr. Garcia of California, Mr. Goldman of New York, Mr. Gomez, Mr. Gottheimer, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Jackson of Illinois, Ms. Jacobs, Ms. Jayapal, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, Mrs. Hayes, Mr. Ivey, Ms. Kamlager-Dove, Mr. Keating, Ms. Kelly of Illinois, Mr. Krishnamoorthi, Mr. Larsen of Washington, Mr. Larson of Connecticut, Mr. Latimer, Ms. Lee of Pennsylvania, Mr. Levin, Mr. Lynch, Mr. Magaziner, Ms. Matsui, Mrs. McBath, Mrs. McClain Delaney, Ms. McClellan, Ms. McCollum, Mr. McGarvey, Mr. Menendez, Ms. Meng, Mr. Morelle, Mr. Moulton, Mr. Mullin, Mr. Nadler, Ms. Norton, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, Ms. Omar, Mr. Pappas, Mr. Panetta, Mr. Peters, Ms. Pingree, Mr. Pocan, Mr. Quigley, Mrs. Ramirez, Ms. Ross, Ms. Scanlon, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Scott of Virginia, Mr. Sherman, Ms. Sherrill, Mr. Smith of Washington, Mr. Stanton, Ms. Stevens, Ms. Strickland, Mr. Subramanyam, Mr. Swalwell, Mr. Takano, Mr. Thanedar, Mr. Thompson of California, Ms. Titus, Ms. Tokuda, Mr. Tonko, Mr. Torres of New York, Mr. Vargas, Ms. Velázquez, Ms. Waters, Mrs. Watson Coleman, Mr. Whitesides, Ms. Williams of Georgia, Ms. Wilson of Florida, Mr. Khanna, and Mr. Min) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
Expressing strong disapproval of the President’s announcement to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement.
Whereas 2024 was the hottest year on record;
Whereas the previous 10 years were the 10 hottest years recorded since 1850;
Whereas global climate change is a threat to all Americans’ health, prosperity, and security;
Whereas global climate change is a threat to the United States public health, national economy, national security, and the legacy we will leave to our children;
Whereas, according to the 2023 Fifth National Climate Assessment, harmful impacts from more frequent and severe extremes are increasing across the country—including increases in heat-related illnesses and death, costlier storm damages, longer droughts that reduce agricultural productivity and strain water systems, and larger, more severe wildfires that threaten homes and degrade air quality
;
Whereas, according to the 2023 Fifth National Climate Assessment, Extreme events cost the US close to $150 billion each year—a conservative estimate that does not account for loss of life, healthcare-related costs, or damages to ecosystem services
;
Whereas. according to the 2023 Fifth National Climate Assessment, Billion-dollar weather and climate disasters are events where damages/costs reach or exceed $1 billion, including adjustments for inflation. Between 2018 and 2022, 89 such events affected the US, including 4 droughts, 6 floods, 52 severe storms, 18 tropical cyclones, 5 wildfires, and 4 winter storm events
;
Whereas the most vulnerable among us, including children, the elderly, low-income individuals, and those with underlying health conditions, face even greater health risks as a result of climate change;
Whereas the National Intelligence Council’s 2021 report on climate change stated that Risks to US national security interests through 2040 will increase as countries respond to the intensifying physical effects of climate change. Global temperatures most likely will surpass the Paris Agreement goal of 1.5°C by around 2030, and the physical effects are projected to continue intensifying
;
Whereas, on May 27, 2021, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley, in a statement to the House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee for the Fiscal Year 2022 defense budget request, stated that Climate change presents a growing threat to U.S. national security interests and defense objectives. The adverse impacts of climate change are already being felt across the Joint Force in terms of increased operational demands, adverse impacts on our installations and new requirements for equipment and formations able to operate in a world defined by climate change and as a contributing factor to regional instability
;
Whereas the Paris Agreement is an international accord that aims to limit the increase in global temperatures to less than two degrees Celsius and urges efforts to limit the increase to one and a half degrees Celsius by 2100 in order to avoid the most disastrous impacts of climate change;
Whereas the Paris Agreement was adopted on December 12, 2015, opened for signature on April 22, 2016, and entered into force on November 4, 2016;
Whereas 195 parties, including the largest emitters of carbon pollution—China, India, and the European Union—have signed the Paris Agreement;
Whereas, on January 20, 2025, President Trump announced his intention to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement;
Whereas, during his first term in office on June 1, 2017, President Trump withdrew the United States from the Paris Agreement, and on November 4, 2020, the United States formally withdrew from the Paris Agreement;
Whereas United States withdrawal from the Paris Agreement reneges on our commitment to the global community to fulfill our responsibility as a party to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and as a major emitter of carbon pollution to reduce our emissions;
Whereas the United States exit from the Paris Agreement will cede leadership on clean energy technologies, and the jobs they create, to China and other nations;
Whereas if the United States again withdraws from the Paris Agreement, it will join Iran, Libya, and Yemen as the only nationstates not participating in the agreement;
Whereas President Biden brought the United States back into the Paris Agreement on February 19, 2021;
Whereas, since rejoining the Paris Agreement, the United States passed consequential climate legislation including the Inflation Reduction Act, Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and CHIPS and Science Act, which put together have created 406,000 new jobs and $422 billion in private investments as of January 2025 and put the United States on track to achieve approximately 40 percent CO2 emissions reductions, bringing the United States closer to fulfilling its commitment under the Paris Agreement achieving of 50-percent reductions by 2030;
Whereas the United States is rapidly onshoring critical supply chains and encouraging a resurgence of investments in domestic manufacturing for innovative technologies, resulting in the manufacturing sector contribution to United States gross domestic product reaching an all-time high;
Whereas the United States can continue to lead the world in innovation and manufacturing clean energy technologies, creating good-paying jobs, modernizing the energy grid, and growing new companies that will be the titans of a new clean energy economy;
Whereas, according to research published on April 2024 in the European Economic Review, it is estimated that, Non-participation of the US would eliminate more than a third of the world emissions reduction (31.8% direct effect and 6.4% leakage effect), while a potential non-participation of China lowers the world emission reduction by 24.1% (11.9% direct effect and 12.2% leakage effect). In terms of welfare, the overwhelming majority of countries gain from the implementation of the Paris Agreement and most countries have only very little to gain from unilaterally deciding not to participate
;
Whereas leaders of the world’s religious communities recognize the grave threat to humanity posed by climate change and our moral obligation to protect the Earth and its people publicly have called upon politicians, business leaders, and the faithful to take action to address climate change;
Whereas, on October 10, 2024, the Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders, representing $4 trillion in revenues and 12 million employees, wrote an open letter reiterating the need to enhance collaboration to deliver on the Paris Agreement goals;
Whereas a group of 22 States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the territories of Puerto Rico and Guam, have all joined the United States Climate Alliance, a bipartisan group of States committed to upholding the goals of the Paris Agreement;
Whereas, according to data from the 2023 Chicago Council Survey, conducted in September 2023, found that the American public broadly supports United States participation in international agreements, with 68 percent of Americans supporting the Paris Agreement; and
Whereas millions of Americans have made their voices heard in support of the Paris Agreement, and the United States upholding its commitments to the international community to reduce carbon pollution for the benefit of good-paying jobs, families, and the environment now and in future generations: Now, therefore, be it
Sec.
That the House of Representatives—
(1)
strongly disapproves of the President’s announcement to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement;
(2)
commends the group of States, cities, colleges and universities, businesses, investors, and individuals who have publicly expressed their support for the Paris Agreement;
(3)
urges the President to reverse his decision and maintain United States participation in the Paris Agreement; and
(4)
urges Congress to prioritize the United States global leadership on addressing climate change.