You Did It! No U.S. Tax Dollars for Dirty Coal Plants Abroad!

By Amanda Starbuck

Jharkand_2.jpgWe did it! We’ve won the first round in a fight against using U.S. tax dollars to finance the dirtiest coal projects around the world, thanks to an outpouring of opposition from environmental activists, including RAN members.

West Virginia Senator and “mouthpiece for the coal industry” Joe Manchin had sought to include a giveaway to Big Coal in legislation reauthorizing the federal Export-Import Bank. But Manchin backed down in the face of mounting pressure earlier this week, instead introducing a “clean” bill without the coal industry goodies.

This is big step in the right direction. Pushing public banks to scale back funding for coal is critical to Rainforest Action Network’s long-term goal of preventing the entire financial sector from bankrolling climate chaos. Public sector financing is one of the few areas on climate where the United States is leading the way, as a result of a new rule put in place last year by the Obama administration limiting the use of federal money to support dirty coal plants abroad.

That policy now remains in place, thanks in part to your advocacy. But Manchin looks determined to reintroduce his coal giveaway as an amendment in the coming months, and if he does we’ll need to raise our voices again. We’ll be watching — and we’ll be back in touch.

But let’s take a moment to celebrate! Thanks for standing up to Big Coal.