Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) Framework: Energy Policy – Summary and Analysis

Bill summaries are based on the version of bill text that was released July 27. It does not reflect updates based on Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s negotiations with leadership, any changes due to the parliamentarian’s rulings or any amendments that have been made during vote-a-rama.

On July 27, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) announced a surprise agreement on a roughly $750 billion tax, energy and health care package including $370 billion in energy security and climate investments. The agreement comes following weeks of negotiations on a budget reconciliation deal that advances President Biden’s policy agenda without significantly increasing inflation. The senators reached a compromise and introduced the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022. The bill seeks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by around 40% by 2030. Energy and climate provisions in the new package would represent the largest climate investment in American history. This memo outlines the new energy policy (Section 1) and related energy tax provisions (Section 2) within the bill.

The path forward for the proposed bill is currently unclear. Procedurally, the proposal must be reviewed by the Senate parliamentarian. Additionally, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), who was heavily engaged in reconciliation discussions late last year, has not yet commented on the proposal. Beyond Sinema, passage of the bill will require the support of every Senate Democrat and almost every Democratic representative. The Senate is scheduled to begin its August recess at the end of this week, so it is unknown when Congress may consider the bill.

The full bill text is linked here.

To see Brownstein's full summary please click here.

THIS DOCUMENT IS INTENDED TO PROVIDE YOU WITH GENERAL INFORMATION REGARDING THE CONTENTS OF THE IRA. THE CONTENTS OF THIS DOCUMENT ARE NOT INTENDED TO PROVIDE SPECIFIC LEGAL ADVICE. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE CONTENTS OF THIS DOCUMENT OR IF YOU NEED LEGAL ADVICE AS TO AN ISSUE, PLEASE CONTACT THE ATTORNEYS LISTED OR YOUR REGULAR BROWNSTEIN HYATT FARBER SCHRECK, LLP ATTORNEY. THIS COMMUNICATION MAY BE CONSIDERED ADVERTISING IN SOME JURISDICTIONS.