WASHINGTON – Today, Friends of the Earth, Taxpayers for Common Sense, R Street Institute,  U.S. PIRG, and Environment America relaunched the Green Scissors Coalition database. The database now captures over $350 billion dollars in wasteful spending for environmentally harmful projects, incorporating new subsidies from the Inflation Reduction Act and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

“Taxpayers should not be on the hook for funding polluters,” said Sarah Lutz, Climate Campaigner at Friends of the Earth. “Projects that are bringing pollution to our communities qualify for billions of dollars worth of subsidies every year. This database proves that Congress has a real opportunity to cut wasteful spending in a way that benefits people and the planet.”

The Green Scissors database identifies federal subsidies that can be cut from certain agriculture, public lands, energy, water and transportation programs. The coalition provides context for each of the database’s items, along with the one- and 10-year cost for taxpayers.

“As Congress gets to work on everything from the farm bill to appropriations bills, there couldn’t be a better time to rein in wasteful and environmentally harmful spending. Congress can hit two birds with one stone by cutting federal spending that wastes taxpayer dollars and harms the environment. The new database is a great place to rein in our record national debt and get our nation’s finances back on track.” said Sheila Korth, Senior Policy Analyst at Taxpayers for Common Sense.

“For far too long, taxpayers have been footing the bills racked up by polluters,” said Matt Casale, PIRG’s Environment Campaign Director. “As Congress takes up appropriations, now is the perfect time to look for ways to cut existing spending that is harmful to our people and planet. The Green Scissors database is a great place to start.”

“Between record-high debt and the climbing costs of climate change, taxpayers can’t afford to continue subsidizing practices that harm both the environment and our economy. As lawmakers look for opportunities to reprioritize limited resources, the updated Green Scissors database provides a common sense approach to achieving impactful savings,” said Nan Swift, Resident Fellow at R Street Institute.

Further information on the Green Scissors coalition can be found here.

COMMUNICATIONS CONTACT: Erika Seiber, eseiber@foe.org