Clean Air Task Force Comments on Implementing Instructions for Federal Government Procurement of Carbon-Free Electricity by 2035

In August 2022, the White House Council on Environmental Quality issued implementing instructions to provide federal executive departments and agencies with direction for implementing Executive Order 14057, Catalyzing Clean Energy Industries and Jobs Through Federal Sustainability using a whole-of-government approach. The Executive Order commits the federal government to procure carbon-free electricity by 2035, setting a bold benchmark for electricity procurement, leveraging the U.S. federal government’s immense buying power to advance carbon-free technologies, and establishing a strong definition of qualifying technologies.

Clean Air Task Force, The NorthBridge Group, and Green Strategies, fully support the administration’s initiative to transition to a carbon pollution-free electricity supply, and want the administration to succeed in achieving its stated goals. In this spirit, we offer these comments and respectfully recommend that the White House Council on Environmental Quality update and amend its instructions.