Weekly Briefing: Senate makes some improvements — our defense work continues

June 18, 2025

On Monday, the Senate Finance Committee released its portion of the big budget bill that’s working its way through Congress.

After the House passed a version of this bill that drastically cuts America’s clean energy tax credits, we’ve been pushing hard on the Senate — and the Senate Finance Committee in particular — to do a better job protecting these important measures.

So, how did this Senate committee do? Indeed, a bit better than the House! Compared to the House bill, the Senate bill has longer phaseouts for the tax credits for nuclear, geothermal, hydropower, and batteries, as well as some other positive changes.

These shifts are worth acknowledging and appreciating. These shifts mean that our advocacy work to defend these tax credits is making a meaningful difference in what members of Congress are willing to support. Our engagement is leading to better outcomes for climate and clean energy than there would be if we weren’t engaging on this.

Thank you to all of our volunteers who sent emails, made calls, and published local media over the last few weeks as we pushed hard to show Senators the value of these tax credits.

Now, that said — even with these improvements, the Senate version of this bill is worse for the climate and for clean energy than if the clean energy tax credits were left intact. So our defense work is not over yet.

The chair of the Senate Finance Committee, Sen. Mike Crapo (R-ID), recently told Politico that Republicans are “not done writing the bill” and there are “all kinds of issues that are still being evaluated.” That means we have another window to continue to advocate for better protection of the clean energy tax credits as negotiations continue.

Today, we launched a new action for CCLers to email their Republican Senators with a message tailored to this moment, using data that we know makes an impact on these lawmakers. If you’re represented by at least one Republican Senator, send them a message today.

Write to My Republican Senator

In other news this week:

• CCL leadership update: On CCL’s monthly meeting over the weekend, Citizens’ Climate board chairs Sandy Kirtland-Turner and Bill Blancato announced that CCL Executive Director Rachel Kerestes has resigned her role, and CCL’s current Vice President of Field Operations Ricky Bradley will serve as our Interim Executive Director. Catch up on the announcement and hear from Ricky himself about his history with our organization, his prior experience, and his belief in our passion and purpose.
  
• Apply to be a CCL intern: Interested in working with CCL staff as an intern for Fall 2025, or know someone who is? Applications are open through the end of this month. See all the available internships and the application process here.

Take action this week

If you have a little time: Catch up on CCL’s June meeting. On Saturday, CCL held our June meeting for volunteers and chapters nationwide. In addition to the leadership update mentioned above, we heard from CCL’s Research Manager Dana Nuccitelli about the impacts of rolling back America’s clean energy tax credits, and we walked through the organization’s June Action Sheet. If you weren’t able to join us live on Saturday, watch the recording.

If you have more time: Plan to join us for CCL’s Summer Conference and Lobby Day in D.C. With budget reconciliation still far from finished, we need you to join us in D.C. next month! CCL’s Summer Conference & Lobby Day is our biggest annual event, taking place this year from July 21-22. CCL volunteers from all around the country will be on Capitol Hill, lobbying Congress for a range of climate and clean energy policies — including trying to protect America’s clean energy tax credits. Lobby spots are limited, so sign up today at cclusa.org/summer to secure your spot!

Upcoming trainings

6/26: Lobbying with Impact: How to Prepare and Show Up Strong for Your Congressional Meetings - As CCL volunteers gear up for our upcoming DC lobby day, preparation is everything. This training is your roadmap to showing up confident, clear, and connected when you walk into a Congressional meeting. Join us!

6/30: Summer 2025 Lobby Training #1: Primary & Secondary Asks - Join CCL's Vice President of Government Affairs Jenn Tyler for a training that will review the updates and context for CCL's Summer 2025 Primary and Secondary Asks as well as guidance for lobby teams as they plan their in-person meetings. Join us!

7/10: Summer 2025 Lobby Training #2: Legislative Plan and Q&A - For the second part of this training series, CCL's Vice President of Government Affairs Jenn Tyler will provide up to the moment insights on the dynamics in Congress and how we can most effectively use our time in meetings to support our agenda. Join us!