About 3.5 million people in the U.S. currently work in the clean energy sector, with more than 1 million of those jobs in southern states, according to a new report.
The reportA report released Tuesday by the nonpartisan business group E2 found employment growth in the clean energy industry in 2023. Inflation Reduction Act. Also included was the sweeping 2022 Act hundreds of billions of dollars to push reduce emissions and help transition the U.S. economy away from fossil fuels to combat climate change.
Clean energy and clean transportation companies added about 150,000 new jobs in 2023, the first full year of the Inflation Relief Act. In total, the South added more than 54,000 clean energy jobs, accounting for 36% of all new jobs in the region.
By comparison, the Midwest, Northeast and West combined added 95,000 clean energy jobs in 2023.
The law, known as the IRA, has become a cornerstone of the Biden administration’s environmental record, and Vice President Kamala Harris celebrated a tie in the Senate vote for the legislation during her presidential campaign.
Employment sectors analyzed in E2’s Clean Jobs America report include clean vehicles, renewable energy, battery storage, grid modernization and biofuels.
The results show that Southern states, traditionally Republican political strongholds, benefit from the IRA, even though Republicans in the House and Senate unanimously oppose the bill.
The report found Alabama, Kentucky and Oklahoma to be among the fastest growing states in clean energy jobs based on percentage increases.
California, Florida and Texas — the three most populous states — lead the way in total jobs in the clean energy industry, E2 found.
According to the report, clean energy jobs in the U.S. grew by about 4.5% last year, far outstripping the nation’s overall job growth of 1.5%. Clean energy jobs currently account for about 1 in 16 new jobs created in the United States
E2 has published annual reports on the growth of clean energy jobs in the United States since 2015.
Given the timing of this year’s report, there may be findings effects on presidential elections in November.
Donald Trump promised If he wins the presidency, he says he will fight inflation to “remove all unspent funds” under the Inflation Reduction Act. Harris, meanwhile, pointed to the act as a prime example of the Biden administration’s job creation.
Harris called the legislation “historic” and “transformational.” statement in August It marks the second anniversary of the IRA.
E2 CEO Bob Keefe said the report shows the potential for future growth in the clean energy sector.
“We’re just getting started,” he said in a statement. “The biggest threats to this unprecedented progress are misguided efforts to repeal or roll back parts of the IRA, despite the law’s clear benefits to both American workers and the communities in which they live.”