STATEMENT: United States’ Bipartisan IMPACT Act 2.0 Fills Gaps in Concrete and Asphalt Climate Legislation
Washington, DC (July 25, 2024) – Today Representatives Max Miller (R-OH-7) and Valerie Foushee (D-NC-4) introduced the IMPACT Act 2.0 (H.R. 9136) to bolster the manufacturing of low-emission cement, concrete, and asphalt binder and mixes to propel U.S. industrial decarbonization. These actions are particularly important as the industrial sector will likely become the U.S.’s top source of greenhouse gas emissions by the end of the decade — overtaking the transportation sector as the country’s number one source of planet-warming pollution.
This bill complements the IMPACT Act introduced in the House of Representatives in March 2024 by Representatives Miller and Foushee, and parallels the Concrete and Asphalt Innovation Act (CAIA) introduced in the U.S. Senate in December 2023 by adding key sections that establish:
- Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) performance-based grants of $15 million to facilitate the purchase of low-emissions concrete and asphalt goods.
- Advance Purchase Commitments (APCs) authority for the Department of Transportation to coordinate state and local agencies to purchase low-emissions goods three or more years into the future.
- An interagency task force on innovation for improving durability, reducing costs, supporting continuous emissions reduction, increasing employment and workforce training.
Following is a statement by Angela Anderson, Director of Industrial Decarbonization and Carbon Removal, U.S. Climate, World Resources Institute:
“This legislation would pave the way for American industries to innovate the foundational materials of our construction industry — concrete and asphalt — toward lowering emissions while strengthening our workforce and reducing costs.”
“The IMPACT Act 2.0, along with the IMPACT Act and the Concrete and Asphalt Act, are a legislative package that will incentivize and support both producers and consumers of low-emission, American-made construction materials while benefiting the communities in which they are produced.
“The bipartisan introduction of this bill by Representative Max Miller from Ohio and Representative Valerie Foushee from North Carolina is an important step. Now we encourage members of Congress to continue leading the way in building a green, innovative and robust American industry.”