U.S. Agencies Announce Programs to Address Environmental Justice Under ‘Justice40 Initiative’

Federal agencies, including the Department of the Interior and the Environmental Protection Agency, on June 24 released their initial lists of programs covered under the Biden administration’s Justice40 Initiative launched in 2021 to ensure that disadvantaged communities receive the benefits of investments in terms of climate, clean water, and energy. The goal of the  initiative is to deliver 40 percent of the benefits of such investments to communities that are marginalized, underserved, and overburdened by pollution.

The Interior Department  has planned to include 65 programs within the department and its 10 bureaus. These covered programs are not only focusing on traditional practices which were used to benefit the underprivileged communities but also developing modes and methods to track the advantages going towards the disadvantaged communities.

The EPA’s list includes 72 programs. The agency continues to implement six Justice40 pilot programs. The purpose of the “Justice40 Pilot Programs” is to accelerate implementation of the initiative. The White House notes that 21 pilot programs were identified and have undergone the most rapid changes, creating a roadmap for covered programs to meet the goals of the Justice40 Initiative. EPA’s pilot programs include:

• Drinking Water State Revolving Fund
• Clean Water State Revolving Fund
• Reducing Lead in Drinking Water
• Superfund Brownfields
• Diesel Emission Reduction Act Program.

Further, EPA’s list includes a newly created Clean School Bus Program authorized through the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. In order to identify the new and the existing programs funded by the infrastructure law, the agency used the Interim Implementation Guidance from the White House Office Management and Budget.