Executive Order No. 14008. Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad

• Published date: 01 February 2021
• Pages: 7619-7633
• FR Document: 2021-02177
• Citation: 86 FR 7619
• Executive Order No.: 14008
• Date: 27 January 2021
• Issuer: Executive Office of the President
• Section: Presidential Documents

Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 19 (Monday, February 1, 2021)

[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 19 (Monday, February 1, 2021)]
                [Presidential Documents]
                [Pages 7619-7633]
                From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
                [FR Doc No: 2021-02177] Presidential Documents
                Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 19 / Monday, February 1, 2021 /
                Presidential Documents
                [[Page 7619]]
                 Executive Order 14008 of January 27, 2021
                
                Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad
                 The United States and the world face a profound climate
                 crisis. We have a narrow moment to pursue action at
                 home and abroad in order to avoid the most catastrophic
                 impacts of that crisis and to seize the opportunity
                 that tackling climate change presents. Domestic action
                 must go hand in hand with United States international
                 leadership, aimed at significantly enhancing global
                 action. Together, we must listen to science and meet
                 the moment.
                 By the authority vested in me as President by the
                 Constitution and the laws of the United States of
                 America, it is hereby ordered as follows:
                 PART I--PUTTING THE CLIMATE CRISIS AT THE CENTER OF
                 UNITED STATES FOREIGN POLICY AND NATIONAL SECURITY
                 Section 101. Policy. United States international
                 engagement to address climate change--which has become
                 a climate crisis--is more necessary and urgent than
                 ever. The scientific community has made clear that the
                 scale and speed of necessary action is greater than
                 previously believed. There is little time left to avoid
                 setting the world on a dangerous, potentially
                 catastrophic, climate trajectory. Responding to the
                 climate crisis will require both significant short-term
                 global reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and net-
                 zero global emissions by mid-century or before.
                 It is the policy of my Administration that climate
                 considerations shall be an essential element of United
                 States foreign policy and national security. The United
                 States will work with other countries and partners,
                 both bilaterally and multilaterally, to put the world
                 on a sustainable climate pathway. The United States
                 will also move quickly to build resilience, both at
                 home and abroad, against the impacts of climate change
                 that are already manifest and will continue to
                 intensify according to current trajectories.
                 Sec. 102. Purpose. This order builds on and reaffirms
                 actions my Administration has already taken to place
                 the climate crisis at the forefront of this Nation's
                 foreign policy and national security planning,
                 including submitting the United States instrument of
                 acceptance to rejoin the Paris Agreement. In
                 implementing--and building upon--the Paris Agreement's
                 three overarching objectives (a safe global
                 temperature, increased climate resilience, and
                 financial flows aligned with a pathway toward low
                 greenhouse gas emissions and climate-resilient
                 development), the United States will exercise its
                 leadership to promote a significant increase in global
                 climate ambition to meet the climate challenge. In this
                 regard:
                 (a) I will host an early Leaders' Climate Summit
                 aimed at raising climate ambition and making a positive
                 contribution to the 26th United Nations Climate Change
                 Conference of the Parties (COP26) and beyond.
                 (b) The United States will reconvene the Major
                 Economies Forum on Energy and Climate, beginning with
                 the Leaders' Climate Summit. In cooperation with the
                 members of that Forum, as well as with other partners
                 as appropriate, the United States will pursue green
                 recovery efforts, initiatives to advance the clean
                 energy transition, sectoral decarbonization, and
                 alignment of financial flows with the objectives of the
                 Paris Agreement, including with respect to coal
                 financing, nature-based solutions, and solutions to
                 other climate-related challenges.
                [[Page 7620]]
                 (c) I have created a new Presidentially appointed
                 position, the Special Presidential Envoy for Climate,
                 to elevate the issue of climate change and underscore
                 the commitment my Administration will make toward
                 addressing it.
                 (d) Recognizing that climate change affects a wide
                 range of subjects, it will be a United States priority
                 to press for enhanced climate ambition and integration
                 of climate considerations across a wide range of
                 international fora, including the Group of Seven (G7),
                 the Group of Twenty (G20), and fora that address clean
                 energy, aviation, shipping, the Arctic, the ocean,
                 sustainable development, migration, and other relevant
                 topics. The Special Presidential Envoy for Climate and
                 others, as appropriate, are encouraged to promote
                 innovative approaches, including international multi-
                 stakeholder initiatives. In addition, my Administration
                 will work in partnership with States, localities,
                 Tribes, territories, and other United States
                 stakeholders to advance United States climate
                 diplomacy.
                 (e) The United States will immediately begin the
                 process of developing its nationally determined
                 contribution under the Paris Agreement. The process
                 will include analysis and input from relevant executive
                 departments and agencies (agencies), as well as
                 appropriate outreach to domestic stakeholders. The
                 United States will aim to submit its nationally
                 determined contribution in advance of the Leaders'
                 Climate Summit.
                 (f) The United States will also immediately begin
                 to develop a climate finance plan, making strategic use
                 of multilateral and bilateral channels and
                 institutions, to assist developing countries in
                 implementing ambitious emissions reduction measures,
                 protecting critical ecosystems, building resilience
                 against the impacts of climate change, and promoting
                 the flow of capital toward climate-aligned investments
                 and away from high-carbon investments. The Secretary of
                 State and the Secretary of the Treasury, in
                 coordination with the Special Presidential Envoy for
                 Climate, shall lead a process to develop this plan,
                 with the participation of the Administrator of the
                 United States Agency for International Development
                 (USAID), the Chief Executive Officer of the United
                 States International Development Finance Corporation
                 (DFC), the Chief Executive Officer of the Millennium
                 Challenge Corporation, the Director of the United
                 States Trade and Development Agency, the Director of
                 the Office of Management and Budget, and the head of
                 any other agency providing foreign assistance and
                 development financing, as appropriate. The Secretary of
                 State and the Secretary of the Treasury shall submit
                 the plan to the President, through the Assistant to the
                 President for National Security Affairs and the
                 Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, within
                 90 days of the date of this order.
                 (g) The Secretary of the Treasury shall:
                (i) ensure that the United States is present and engaged in relevant
                international fora and institutions that are working on the management of
                climate-related financial risks;
                (ii) develop a strategy for how the voice and vote of the United States can
                be used in international financial institutions, including the World Bank
                Group and the International Monetary Fund, to promote financing programs,
                economic stimulus packages, and debt relief initiatives that are aligned
                with and support the goals of the Paris Agreement; and
                (iii) develop, in collaboration with the Secretary of State, the
                Administrator of USAID, and the Chief Executive Officer of the DFC, a plan
                for promoting the protection of the Amazon rainforest and other critical
                ecosystems that serve as global carbon sinks, including through market-
                based mechanisms.
                 (h) The Secretary of State, the Secretary of the
                 Treasury, and the Secretary of Energy shall work
                 together and with the Export-Import Bank of the United
                 States, the Chief Executive Officer of the DFC, and the
                 heads of other agencies and partners, as appropriate,
                 to identify steps through which the United States can
                 promote ending international financing of carbon-
                [[Page 7621]]
                 intensive fossil fuel-based energy while simultaneously
                 advancing sustainable development and a green recovery,
                 in consultation with the Assistant to the President for
                 National Security Affairs.
                (i) The Secretary of Energy, in cooperation with the Secretary of State and
                the heads of other agencies, as appropriate, shall identify steps through
                which the United States can intensify international collaborations to drive
                innovation and deployment of clean energy technologies, which are critical
                for climate protection.
                (j) The Secretary of State shall prepare, within 60 days of the date of
                this order, a transmittal package seeking the Senate's advice and consent
                to ratification of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on
                Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, regarding the phasedown of the
                production and consumption of hydrofluorocarbons.
                 Sec. 103. Prioritizing Climate in Foreign Policy and
                 National Security. To ensure that climate change
                 considerations are central to United States foreign
                 policy and national security:
                 (a) Agencies that engage in extensive international
                 work shall develop, in coordination with the Special
                 Presidential Envoy for Climate, and submit to the
                 President, through the Assistant to the President for
                 National Security Affairs, within 90 days of the date
                 of this order, strategies and implementation plans for
                 integrating climate considerations into their
                 international work, as appropriate and consistent with
                 applicable law. These strategies and plans should
                 include an assessment of:
                (i) climate impacts relevant to broad agency strategies in particular
                countries or regions;
                (ii) climate impacts on their agency-managed infrastructure abroad (e.g.,
                embassies, military installations), without prejudice to existing
                requirements regarding assessment of such infrastructure;
                (iii) how the agency intends to manage such impacts or incorporate risk
                mitigation into its installation master plans; and
                (iv) how the agency's international work, including partner engagement, can
                contribute to addressing the climate crisis.
                 (b) The Director of National Intelligence shall
                 prepare, within 120 days of the date of this order, a
                 National Intelligence Estimate on the national and
                 economic security impacts of climate change.
                 (c) The Secretary of Defense, in coordination with
                 the Secretary of Commerce, through the Administrator of
                 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,
                 the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality, the
                 Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency,
                 the Director of National Intelligence, the Director of
                 the Office of Science and Technology Policy, the
                 Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space
                 Administration, and the heads of other agencies as
                 appropriate, shall develop and submit to the President,
                 within 120 days of the date of this order, an analysis
                 of the security implications of climate change (Climate
                 Risk Analysis) that can be incorporated into modeling,
                 simulation, war-gaming, and other analyses.
                 (d) The Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of
                 the Joint Chiefs of Staff shall consider the security
                 implications of climate change, including any relevant
                 information from the Climate Risk Analysis described in
                 subsection (c) of this section, in developing the
                 National Defense Strategy, Defense Planning Guidance,
                 Chairman's Risk Assessment, and other relevant
                 strategy, planning, and programming documents and
                 processes. Starting in January 2022, the Secretary of
                 Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
                 shall provide an annual update, through the National
                 Security Council, on the progress made in incorporating
                 the security implications of climate change into these
                 documents and processes.
                 (e) The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
                 consider the implications of climate change in the
                 Arctic, along our Nation's borders, and to National
                [[Page 7622]]
                 Critical Functions, including any relevant information
                 from the Climate Risk Analysis described in subsection
                 (c) of this section, in developing relevant strategy,
                 planning, and programming documents and processes.
                 Starting in January 2022, the Secretary of Homeland
                 Security shall provide an annual update, through the
                 National Security Council, on the progress made in
                 incorporating the homeland security implications of
                 climate change into these documents and processes.
                 Sec. 104. Reinstatement. The Presidential Memorandum of
                 September 21, 2016 (Climate Change and National
                 Security), is hereby reinstated.
                 PART II--TAKING A GOVERNMENT-WIDE APPROACH TO THE
                 CLIMATE CRISIS
                 Sec. 201. Policy. Even as our Nation emerges from
                 profound public health and economic crises borne of a
                 pandemic, we face a climate crisis that threatens our
                 people and communities, public health and economy, and,
                 starkly, our ability to live on planet Earth. Despite
                 the peril that is already evident, there is promise in
                 the solutions--opportunities to create well-paying
                 union jobs to build a modern and sustainable
                 infrastructure, deliver an equitable, clean energy
                 future, and put the United States on a path to achieve
                 net-zero emissions, economy-wide, by no later than
                 2050.
                 We must listen to science--and act. We must strengthen
                 our clean air and water protections. We must hold
                 polluters accountable for their actions. We must
                 deliver environmental justice in communities all across
                 America. The Federal Government must drive assessment,
                 disclosure, and mitigation of climate pollution and
                 climate-related risks in every sector of our economy,
                 marshaling the creativity, courage, and capital
                 necessary to make our Nation resilient in the face of
                 this threat. Together, we must combat the climate
                 crisis with bold, progressive action that combines the
                 full capacity of the Federal Government with efforts
                 from every corner of our Nation, every level of
                 government, and every sector of our economy.
                 It is the policy of my Administration to organize and
                 deploy the full capacity of its agencies to combat the
                 climate crisis to implement a Government-wide approach
                 that reduces climate pollution in every sector of the
                 economy; increases resilience to the impacts of climate
                 change; protects public health; conserves our lands,
                 waters, and biodiversity; delivers environmental
                 justice; and spurs well-paying union jobs and economic
                 growth, especially through innovation,
                 commercialization, and deployment of clean energy
                 technologies and infrastructure. Successfully meeting
                 these challenges will require the Federal Government to
                 pursue such a coordinated approach from planning to
                 implementation, coupled with substantive engagement by
                 stakeholders, including State, local, and Tribal
                 governments.
                 Sec. 202. White House Office of Domestic Climate
                 Policy. There is hereby established the White House
                 Office of Domestic Climate Policy (Climate Policy
                 Office) within the Executive Office of the President,
                 which shall coordinate the policy-making process with
                 respect to domestic climate-policy issues; coordinate
                 domestic climate-policy advice to the President; ensure
                 that domestic climate-policy decisions and programs are
                 consistent with the President's stated goals and that
                 those goals are being effectively pursued; and monitor
                 implementation of the President's domestic climate-
                 policy agenda. The Climate Policy Office shall have a
                 staff headed by the Assistant to the President and
                 National Climate Advisor (National Climate Advisor) and
                 shall include the Deputy Assistant to the President and
                 Deputy National Climate Advisor. The Climate Policy
                 Office shall have such staff and other assistance as
                 may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this
                 order, subject to the availability of appropriations,
                 and may work with established or ad hoc committees or
                 interagency groups. All agencies shall cooperate with
                 the Climate Policy Office and provide such information,
                 support, and assistance to the Climate Policy Office as
                 it may request, as appropriate and consistent with
                 applicable law.
                [[Page 7623]]
                 Sec. 203. National Climate Task Force. There is hereby
                 established a National Climate Task Force (Task Force).
                 The Task Force shall be chaired by the National Climate
                 Advisor.
                 (a) Membership. The Task Force shall consist of the
                 following additional members:
                (i) the Secretary of the Treasury;
                (ii) the Secretary of Defense;
                (iii) the Attorney General;
                (iv) the Secretary of the Interior;
                (v) the Secretary of Agriculture;
                (vi) the Secretary of Commerce;
                (vii) the Secretary of Labor;
                (viii) the Secretary of Health and Human Services;
                (ix) the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development;
                (x) the Secretary of Transportation;
                (xi) the Secretary of Energy;
                (xii) the Secretary of Homeland Security;
                (xiii) the Administrator of General Services;
                (xiv) the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality;
                (xv) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency;
                (xvi) the Director of the Office of Management and Budget;
                (xvii) the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy;
                (xviii) the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy;
                (xix) the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs;
                (xx) the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and
                Counterterrorism; and
                (xxi) the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy.
                 (b) Mission and Work. The Task Force shall
                 facilitate the organization and deployment of a
                 Government-wide approach to combat the climate crisis.
                 This Task Force shall facilitate planning and
                 implementation of key Federal actions to reduce climate
                 pollution; increase resilience to the impacts of
                 climate change; protect public health; conserve our
                 lands, waters, oceans, and biodiversity; deliver
                 environmental justice; and spur well-paying union jobs
                 and economic growth. As necessary and appropriate,
                 members of the Task Force will engage on these matters
                 with State, local, Tribal, and territorial governments;
                 workers and communities; and leaders across the various
                 sectors of our economy.
                 (c) Prioritizing Actions. To the extent permitted
                 by law, Task Force members shall prioritize action on
                 climate change in their policy-making and budget
                 processes, in their contracting and procurement, and in
                 their engagement with State, local, Tribal, and
                 territorial governments; workers and communities; and
                 leaders across all the sectors of our economy.
                 USE OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT'S BUYING POWER AND REAL
                 PROPERTY AND ASSET MANAGEMENT
                 Sec. 204. Policy. It is the policy of my Administration
                 to lead the Nation's effort to combat the climate
                 crisis by example--specifically, by aligning the
                 management of Federal procurement and real property,
                 public lands and waters, and financial programs to
                 support robust climate action. By providing an
                 immediate, clear, and stable source of product demand,
                 increased transparency and data, and robust standards
                 for the market, my Administration will help to catalyze
                 private sector investment into, and
                [[Page 7624]]
                 accelerate the advancement of America's industrial
                 capacity to supply, domestic clean energy, buildings,
                 vehicles, and other necessary products and materials.
                 Sec. 205. Federal Clean Electricity and Vehicle
                 Procurement Strategy. (a) The Chair of the Council on
                 Environmental Quality, the Administrator of General
                 Services, and the Director of the Office and Management
                 and Budget, in coordination with the Secretary of
                 Commerce, the Secretary of Labor, the Secretary of
                 Energy, and the heads of other relevant agencies, shall
                 assist the National Climate Advisor, through the Task
                 Force established in section 203 of this order, in
                 developing a comprehensive plan to create good jobs and
                 stimulate clean energy industries by revitalizing the
                 Federal Government's sustainability efforts.
                 (b) The plan shall aim to use, as appropriate and
                 consistent with applicable law, all available
                 procurement authorities to achieve or facilitate:
                (i) a carbon pollution-free electricity sector no later than 2035; and
                (ii) clean and zero-emission vehicles for Federal, State, local, and Tribal
                government fleets, including vehicles of the United States Postal Service.
                 (c) If necessary, the plan shall recommend any
                 additional legislation needed to accomplish these
                 objectives.
                 (d) The plan shall also aim to ensure that the
                 United States retains the union jobs integral to and
                 involved in running and maintaining clean and zero-
                 emission fleets, while spurring the creation of union
                 jobs in the manufacture of those new vehicles. The plan
                 shall be submitted to the Task Force within 90 days of
                 the date of this order.
                 Sec. 206. Procurement Standards. Consistent with the
                 Executive Order of January 25, 2021, entitled,
                 ``Ensuring the Future Is Made in All of America by All
                 of America's Workers,'' agencies shall adhere to the
                 requirements of the Made in America Laws in making
                 clean energy, energy efficiency, and clean energy
                 procurement decisions. Agencies shall, consistent with
                 applicable law, apply and enforce the Davis-Bacon Act
                 and prevailing wage and benefit requirements. The
                 Secretary of Labor shall take steps to update
                 prevailing wage requirements. The Chair of the Council
                 on Environmental Quality shall consider additional
                 administrative steps and guidance to assist the Federal
                 Acquisition Regulatory Council in developing regulatory
                 amendments to promote increased contractor attention on
                 reduced carbon emission and Federal sustainability.
                 Sec. 207. Renewable Energy on Public Lands and in
                 Offshore Waters. The Secretary of the Interior shall
                 review siting and permitting processes on public lands
                 and in offshore waters to identify to the Task Force
                 steps that can be taken, consistent with applicable
                 law, to increase renewable energy production on those
                 lands and in those waters, with the goal of doubling
                 offshore wind by 2030 while ensuring robust protection
                 for our lands, waters, and biodiversity and creating
                 good jobs. In conducting this review, the Secretary of
                 the Interior shall consult, as appropriate, with the
                 heads of relevant agencies, including the Secretary of
                 Defense, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of
                 Commerce, through the Administrator of the National
                 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Secretary
                 of Energy, the Chair of the Council on Environmental
                 Quality, State and Tribal authorities, project
                 developers, and other interested parties. The Secretary
                 of the Interior shall engage with Tribal authorities
                 regarding the development and management of renewable
                 and conventional energy resources on Tribal lands.
                 Sec. 208. Oil and Natural Gas Development on Public
                 Lands and in Offshore Waters. To the extent consistent
                 with applicable law, the Secretary of the Interior
                 shall pause new oil and natural gas leases on public
                 lands or in offshore waters pending completion of a
                 comprehensive review and reconsideration of Federal oil
                 and gas permitting and leasing practices in light of
                 the Secretary of the Interior's broad stewardship
                 responsibilities over the public lands and in offshore
                 waters, including potential climate and
                [[Page 7625]]
                 other impacts associated with oil and gas activities on
                 public lands or in offshore waters. The Secretary of
                 the Interior shall complete that review in consultation
                 with the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of
                 Commerce, through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
                 Administration, and the Secretary of Energy. In
                 conducting this analysis, and to the extent consistent
                 with applicable law, the Secretary of the Interior
                 shall consider whether to adjust royalties associated
                 with coal, oil, and gas resources extracted from public
                 lands and offshore waters, or take other appropriate
                 action, to account for corresponding climate costs.
                 Sec. 209. Fossil Fuel Subsidies. The heads of agencies
                 shall identify for the Director of the Office of
                 Management and Budget and the National Climate Advisor
                 any fossil fuel subsidies provided by their respective
                 agencies, and then take steps to ensure that, to the
                 extent consistent with applicable law, Federal funding
                 is not directly subsidizing fossil fuels. The Director
                 of the Office of Management and Budget shall seek, in
                 coordination with the heads of agencies and the
                 National Climate Advisor, to eliminate fossil fuel
                 subsidies from the budget request for Fiscal Year 2022
                 and thereafter.
                 Sec. 210. Clean Energy in Financial Management. The
                 heads of agencies shall identify opportunities for
                 Federal funding to spur innovation, commercialization,
                 and deployment of clean energy technologies and
                 infrastructure for the Director of the Office of
                 Management and Budget and the National Climate Advisor,
                 and then take steps to ensure that, to the extent
                 consistent with applicable law, Federal funding is used
                 to spur innovation, commercialization, and deployment
                 of clean energy technologies and infrastructure. The
                 Director of the Office of Management and Budget, in
                 coordination with agency heads and the National Climate
                 Advisor, shall seek to prioritize such investments in
                 the President's budget request for Fiscal Year 2022 and
                 thereafter.
                 Sec. 211. Climate Action Plans and Data and Information
                 Products to Improve Adaptation and Increase Resilience.
                 (a) The head of each agency shall submit a draft action
                 plan to the Task Force and the Federal Chief
                 Sustainability Officer within 120 days of the date of
                 this order that describes steps the agency can take
                 with regard to its facilities and operations to bolster
                 adaptation and increase resilience to the impacts of
                 climate change. Action plans should, among other
                 things, describe the agency's climate vulnerabilities
                 and describe the agency's plan to use the power of
                 procurement to increase the energy and water efficiency
                 of United States Government installations, buildings,
                 and facilities and ensure they are climate-ready.
                 Agencies shall consider the feasibility of using the
                 purchasing power of the Federal Government to drive
                 innovation, and shall seek to increase the Federal
                 Government's resilience against supply chain
                 disruptions. Such disruptions put the Nation's
                 manufacturing sector at risk, as well as consumer
                 access to critical goods and services. Agencies shall
                 make their action plans public, and post them on the
                 agency website, to the extent consistent with
                 applicable law.
                 (b) Within 30 days of an agency's submission of an
                 action plan, the Federal Chief Sustainability Officer,
                 in coordination with the Director of the Office of
                 Management and Budget, shall review the plan to assess
                 its consistency with the policy set forth in section
                 204 of this order and the priorities issued by the
                 Office of Management and Budget.
                 (c) After submitting an initial action plan, the
                 head of each agency shall submit to the Task Force and
                 Federal Chief Sustainability Officer progress reports
                 annually on the status of implementation efforts.
                 Agencies shall make progress reports public and post
                 them on the agency website, to the extent consistent
                 with applicable law. The heads of agencies shall assign
                 their respective agency Chief Sustainability Officer
                 the authority to perform duties relating to
                 implementation of this order within the agency, to the
                 extent consistent with applicable law.
                 (d) To assist agencies and State, local, Tribal,
                 and territorial governments, communities, and
                 businesses in preparing for and adapting to the impacts
                 of climate change, the Secretary of Commerce, through
                 the Administrator
                [[Page 7626]]
                 of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,
                 the Secretary of Homeland Security, through the
                 Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management
                 Agency, and the Director of the Office of Science and
                 Technology Policy, in coordination with the heads of
                 other agencies, as appropriate, shall provide to the
                 Task Force a report on ways to expand and improve
                 climate forecast capabilities and information products
                 for the public. In addition, the Secretary of the
                 Interior and the Deputy Director for Management of the
                 Office of Management and Budget, in their capacities as
                 the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Federal Geographic Data
                 Committee, shall assess and provide to the Task Force a
                 report on the potential development of a consolidated
                 Federal geographic mapping service that can facilitate
                 public access to climate-related information that will
                 assist Federal, State, local, and Tribal governments in
                 climate planning and resilience activities.
                 EMPOWERING WORKERS THROUGH REBUILDING OUR
                 INFRASTRUCTURE FOR A SUSTAINABLE ECONOMY
                 Sec. 212. Policy. This Nation needs millions of
                 construction, manufacturing, engineering, and skilled-
                 trades workers to build a new American infrastructure
                 and clean energy economy. These jobs will create
                 opportunities for young people and for older workers
                 shifting to new professions, and for people from all
                 backgrounds and communities. Such jobs will bring
                 opportunity to communities too often left behind--
                 places that have suffered as a result of economic
                 shifts and places that have suffered the most from
                 persistent pollution, including low-income rural and
                 urban communities, communities of color, and Native
                 communities.
                 Sec. 213. Sustainable Infrastructure. (a) The Chair of
                 the Council on Environmental Quality and the Director
                 of the Office of Management and Budget shall take
                 steps, consistent with applicable law, to ensure that
                 Federal infrastructure investment reduces climate
                 pollution, and to require that Federal permitting
                 decisions consider the effects of greenhouse gas
                 emissions and climate change. In addition, they shall
                 review, and report to the National Climate Advisor on,
                 siting and permitting processes, including those in
                 progress under the auspices of the Federal Permitting
                 Improvement Steering Council, and identify steps that
                 can be taken, consistent with applicable law, to
                 accelerate the deployment of clean energy and
                 transmission projects in an environmentally stable
                 manner.
                 (b) Agency heads conducting infrastructure reviews
                 shall, as appropriate, consult from an early stage with
                 State, local, and Tribal officials involved in
                 permitting or authorizing proposed infrastructure
                 projects to develop efficient timelines for decision-
                 making that are appropriate given the complexities of
                 proposed projects.
                 EMPOWERING WORKERS BY ADVANCING CONSERVATION,
                 AGRICULTURE, AND REFORESTATION
                 Sec. 214. Policy. It is the policy of my Administration
                 to put a new generation of Americans to work conserving
                 our public lands and waters. The Federal Government
                 must protect America's natural treasures, increase
                 reforestation, improve access to recreation, and
                 increase resilience to wildfires and storms, while
                 creating well-paying union jobs for more Americans,
                 including more opportunities for women and people of
                 color in occupations where they are underrepresented.
                 America's farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners have
                 an important role to play in combating the climate
                 crisis and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, by
                 sequestering carbon in soils, grasses, trees, and other
                 vegetation and sourcing sustainable bioproducts and
                 fuels. Coastal communities have an essential role to
                 play in mitigating climate change and strengthening
                 resilience by protecting and restoring coastal
                 ecosystems, such as wetlands, seagrasses, coral and
                 oyster reefs, and mangrove and kelp forests, to protect
                 vulnerable coastlines, sequester carbon, and support
                 biodiversity and fisheries.
                 Sec. 215. Civilian Climate Corps. In furtherance of the
                 policy set forth in section 214 of this order, the
                 Secretary of the Interior, in collaboration with the
                 Secretary of Agriculture and the heads of other
                 relevant agencies,
                [[Page 7627]]
                 shall submit a strategy to the Task Force within 90
                 days of the date of this order for creating a Civilian
                 Climate Corps Initiative, within existing
                 appropriations, to mobilize the next generation of
                 conservation and resilience workers and maximize the
                 creation of accessible training opportunities and good
                 jobs. The initiative shall aim to conserve and restore
                 public lands and waters, bolster community resilience,
                 increase reforestation, increase carbon sequestration
                 in the agricultural sector, protect biodiversity,
                 improve access to recreation, and address the changing
                 climate.
                 Sec. 216. Conserving Our Nation's Lands and Waters. (a)
                 The Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the
                 Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Commerce,
                 the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality, and
                 the heads of other relevant agencies, shall submit a
                 report to the Task Force within 90 days of the date of
                 this order recommending steps that the United States
                 should take, working with State, local, Tribal, and
                 territorial governments, agricultural and forest
                 landowners, fishermen, and other key stakeholders, to
                 achieve the goal of conserving at least 30 percent of
                 our lands and waters by 2030.
                (i) The Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Agriculture, the
                Secretary of Commerce, through the Administrator of the National Oceanic
                and Atmospheric Administration, and the Chair of the Council on
                Environmental Quality shall, as appropriate, solicit input from State,
                local, Tribal, and territorial officials, agricultural and forest
                landowners, fishermen, and other key stakeholders in identifying strategies
                that will encourage broad participation in the goal of conserving 30
                percent of our lands and waters by 2030.
                (ii) The report shall propose guidelines for determining whether lands and
                waters qualify for conservation, and it also shall establish mechanisms to
                measure progress toward the 30-percent goal. The Secretary of the Interior
                shall subsequently submit annual reports to the Task Force to monitor
                progress.
                 (b) The Secretary of Agriculture shall:
                (i) initiate efforts in the first 60 days from the date of this order to
                collect input from Tribes, farmers, ranchers, forest owners, conservation
                groups, firefighters, and other stakeholders on how to best use Department
                of Agriculture programs, funding and financing capacities, and other
                authorities, and how to encourage the voluntary adoption of climate-smart
                agricultural and forestry practices that decrease wildfire risk fueled by
                climate change and result in additional, measurable, and verifiable carbon
                reductions and sequestration and that source sustainable bioproducts and
                fuels; and
                (ii) submit to the Task Force within 90 days of the date of this order a
                report making recommendations for an agricultural and forestry climate
                strategy.
                 (c) The Secretary of Commerce, through the
                 Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
                 Administration, shall initiate efforts in the first 60
                 days from the date of this order to collect input from
                 fishermen, regional ocean councils, fishery management
                 councils, scientists, and other stakeholders on how to
                 make fisheries and protected resources more resilient
                 to climate change, including changes in management and
                 conservation measures, and improvements in science,
                 monitoring, and cooperative research.
                 EMPOWERING WORKERS THROUGH REVITALIZING ENERGY
                 COMMUNITIES
                 Sec. 217. Policy. It is the policy of my Administration
                 to improve air and water quality and to create well-
                 paying union jobs and more opportunities for women and
                 people of color in hard-hit communities, including
                 rural communities, while reducing methane emissions,
                 oil and brine leaks, and other environmental harms from
                 tens of thousands of former mining and well sites.
                 Mining and power plant workers drove the industrial
                 revolution and the economic growth that followed, and
                 have been essential to the growth of the United States.
                 As the Nation shifts to a clean energy economy,
                [[Page 7628]]
                 Federal leadership is essential to foster economic
                 revitalization of and investment in these communities,
                 ensure the creation of good jobs that provide a choice
                 to join a union, and secure the benefits that have been
                 earned by workers.
                 Such work should include projects that reduce emissions
                 of toxic substances and greenhouse gases from existing
                 and abandoned infrastructure and that prevent
                 environmental damage that harms communities and poses a
                 risk to public health and safety. Plugging leaks in oil
                 and gas wells and reclaiming abandoned mine land can
                 create well-paying union jobs in coal, oil, and gas
                 communities while restoring natural assets,
                 revitalizing recreation economies, and curbing methane
                 emissions. In addition, such work should include
                 efforts to turn properties idled in these communities,
                 such as brownfields, into new hubs for the growth of
                 our economy. Federal agencies should therefore
                 coordinate investments and other efforts to assist
                 coal, oil and gas, and power plant communities, and
                 achieve substantial reductions of methane emissions
                 from the oil and gas sector as quickly as possible.
                 Sec. 218. Interagency Working Group on Coal and Power
                 Plant Communities and Economic Revitalization. There is
                 hereby established an Interagency Working Group on Coal
                 and Power Plant Communities and Economic Revitalization
                 (Interagency Working Group). The National Climate
                 Advisor and the Assistant to the President for Economic
                 Policy shall serve as Co-Chairs of the Interagency
                 Working Group.
                 (a) Membership. The Interagency Working Group shall
                 consist of the following additional members:
                (i) the Secretary of the Treasury;
                (ii) the Secretary of the Interior;
                (iii) the Secretary of Agriculture;
                (iv) the Secretary of Commerce;
                (v) the Secretary of Labor;
                (vi) the Secretary of Health and Human Services;
                (vii) the Secretary of Transportation;
                (viii) the Secretary of Energy;
                (ix) the Secretary of Education;
                (x) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency;
                (xi) the Director of the Office of Management and Budget;
                (xii) the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy and Director of
                the Domestic Policy Council; and
                (xiii) the Federal Co-Chair of the Appalachian Regional Commission.
                 (b) Mission and Work.
                (i) The Interagency Working Group shall coordinate the identification and
                delivery of Federal resources to revitalize the economies of coal, oil and
                gas, and power plant communities; develop strategies to implement the
                policy set forth in section 217 of this order and for economic and social
                recovery; assess opportunities to ensure benefits and protections for coal
                and power plant workers; and submit reports to the National Climate Advisor
                and the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy on a regular basis
                on the progress of the revitalization effort.
                (ii) As part of this effort, within 60 days of the date of this order, the
                Interagency Working Group shall submit a report to the President describing
                all mechanisms, consistent with applicable law, to prioritize grantmaking,
                Federal loan programs, technical assistance, financing, procurement, or
                other existing programs to support and revitalize the economies of coal and
                power plant communities, and providing recommendations for action
                consistent with the goals of the Interagency Working Group.
                [[Page 7629]]
                 (c) Consultation. Consistent with the objectives
                 set out in this order and in accordance with applicable
                 law, the Interagency Working Group shall seek the views
                 of State, local, and Tribal officials; unions;
                 environmental justice organizations; community groups;
                 and other persons it identifies who may have
                 perspectives on the mission of the Interagency Working
                 Group.
                 (d) Administration. The Interagency Working Group
                 shall be housed within the Department of Energy. The
                 Chairs shall convene regular meetings of the
                 Interagency Working Group, determine its agenda, and
                 direct its work. The Secretary of Energy, in
                 consultation with the Chairs, shall designate an
                 Executive Director of the Interagency Working Group,
                 who shall coordinate the work of the Interagency
                 Working Group and head any staff assigned to the
                 Interagency Working Group.
                 (e) Officers. To facilitate the work of the
                 Interagency Working Group, the head of each agency
                 listed in subsection (a) of this section shall assign a
                 designated official within the agency the authority to
                 represent the agency on the Interagency Working Group
                 and perform such other duties relating to the
                 implementation of this order within the agency as the
                 head of the agency deems appropriate.
                 SECURING ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND SPURRING ECONOMIC
                 OPPORTUNITY
                 Sec. 219. Policy. To secure an equitable economic
                 future, the United States must ensure that
                 environmental and economic justice are key
                 considerations in how we govern. That means investing
                 and building a clean energy economy that creates well-
                 paying union jobs, turning disadvantaged communities--
                 historically marginalized and overburdened--into
                 healthy, thriving communities, and undertaking robust
                 actions to mitigate climate change while preparing for
                 the impacts of climate change across rural, urban, and
                 Tribal areas. Agencies shall make achieving
                 environmental justice part of their missions by
                 developing programs, policies, and activities to
                 address the disproportionately high and adverse human
                 health, environmental, climate-related and other
                 cumulative impacts on disadvantaged communities, as
                 well as the accompanying economic challenges of such
                 impacts. It is therefore the policy of my
                 Administration to secure environmental justice and spur
                 economic opportunity for disadvantaged communities that
                 have been historically marginalized and overburdened by
                 pollution and underinvestment in housing,
                 transportation, water and wastewater infrastructure,
                 and health care.
                 Sec. 220. White House Environmental Justice Interagency
                 Council. (a) Section 1-102 of Executive Order 12898 of
                 February 11, 1994 (Federal Actions To Address
                 Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-
                 Income Populations), is hereby amended to read as
                 follows:
                 ``(a) There is hereby created within the Executive
                 Office of the President a White House Environmental
                 Justice Interagency Council (Interagency Council). The
                 Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality shall
                 serve as Chair of the Interagency Council.
                 ``(b) Membership. The Interagency Council shall
                 consist of the following additional members:
                (i) the Secretary of Defense;
                (ii) the Attorney General;
                (iii) the Secretary of the Interior;
                (iv) the Secretary of Agriculture;
                (v) the Secretary of Commerce;
                (vi) the Secretary of Labor;
                (vii) the Secretary of Health and Human Services;
                (viii) the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development;
                [[Page 7630]]
                (ix) the Secretary of Transportation;
                (x) the Secretary of Energy;
                (xi) the Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers;
                (xii) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency;
                (xiii) the Director of the Office of Management and Budget;
                (xiv) the Executive Director of the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering
                Council;
                (xv) the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy;
                (xvi) the National Climate Advisor;
                (xvii) the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy; and
                (xviii) the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy.
                 ``(c) At the direction of the Chair, the
                 Interagency Council may establish subgroups consisting
                 exclusively of Interagency Council members or their
                 designees under this section, as appropriate.
                 ``(d) Mission and Work. The Interagency Council
                 shall develop a strategy to address current and
                 historic environmental injustice by consulting with the
                 White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council and
                 with local environmental justice leaders. The
                 Interagency Council shall also develop clear
                 performance metrics to ensure accountability, and
                 publish an annual public performance scorecard on its
                 implementation.
                 ``(e) Administration. The Office of Administration
                 within the Executive Office of the President shall
                 provide funding and administrative support for the
                 Interagency Council, to the extent permitted by law and
                 within existing appropriations. To the extent permitted
                 by law, including the Economy Act (31 U.S.C. 1535), and
                 subject to the availability of appropriations, the
                 Department of Labor, the Department of Transportation,
                 and the Environmental Protection Agency shall provide
                 administrative support as necessary.
                 ``(f) Meetings and Staff. The Chair shall convene
                 regular meetings of the Council, determine its agenda,
                 and direct its work. The Chair shall designate an
                 Executive Director of the Council, who shall coordinate
                 the work of the Interagency Council and head any staff
                 assigned to the Council.
                 ``(g) Officers. To facilitate the work of the
                 Interagency Council, the head of each agency listed in
                 subsection (b) shall assign a designated official
                 within the agency to be an Environmental Justice
                 Officer, with the authority to represent the agency on
                 the Interagency Council and perform such other duties
                 relating to the implementation of this order within the
                 agency as the head of the agency deems appropriate.''
                 (b) The Interagency Council shall, within 120 days
                 of the date of this order, submit to the President,
                 through the National Climate Advisor, a set of
                 recommendations for further updating Executive Order
                 12898.
                 Sec. 221. White House Environmental Justice Advisory
                 Council. There is hereby established, within the
                 Environmental Protection Agency, the White House
                 Environmental Justice Advisory Council (Advisory
                 Council), which shall advise the Interagency Council
                 and the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality.
                 (a) Membership. Members shall be appointed by the
                 President, shall be drawn from across the political
                 spectrum, and may include those with knowledge about or
                 experience in environmental justice, climate change,
                 disaster preparedness, racial inequity, or any other
                 area determined by the President to be of value to the
                 Advisory Council.
                 (b) Mission and Work. The Advisory Council shall be
                 solely advisory. It shall provide recommendations to
                 the White House Environmental Justice Interagency
                 Council established in section 220 of this order on how
                 to increase the Federal Government's efforts to address
                 current and historic environmental injustice, including
                 recommendations for updating Executive Order 12898.
                [[Page 7631]]
                 (c) Administration. The Environmental Protection
                 Agency shall provide funding and administrative support
                 for the Advisory Council to the extent permitted by law
                 and within existing appropriations. Members of the
                 Advisory Council shall serve without either
                 compensation or reimbursement of expenses.
                 (d) Federal Advisory Committee Act. Insofar as the
                 Federal Advisory Committee Act, as amended (5 U.S.C.
                 App.), may apply to the Advisory Council, any functions
                 of the President under the Act, except for those in
                 section 6 of the Act, shall be performed by the
                 Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency in
                 accordance with the guidelines that have been issued by
                 the Administrator of General Services.
                 Sec. 222. Agency Responsibilities. In furtherance of
                 the policy set forth in section 219:
                 (a) The Chair of the Council on Environmental
                 Quality shall, within 6 months of the date of this
                 order, create a geospatial Climate and Economic Justice
                 Screening Tool and shall annually publish interactive
                 maps highlighting disadvantaged communities.
                 (b) The Administrator of the Environmental
                 Protection Agency shall, within existing appropriations
                 and consistent with applicable law:
                (i) strengthen enforcement of environmental violations with
                disproportionate impact on underserved communities through the Office of
                Enforcement and Compliance Assurance; and
                (ii) create a community notification program to monitor and provide real-
                time data to the public on current environmental pollution, including
                emissions, criteria pollutants, and toxins, in frontline and fenceline
                communities--places with the most significant exposure to such pollution.
                 (c) The Attorney General shall, within existing
                 appropriations and consistent with applicable law:
                (i) consider renaming the Environment and Natural Resources Division the
                Environmental Justice and Natural Resources Division;
                (ii) direct that division to coordinate with the Administrator of the
                Environmental Protection Agency, through the Office of Enforcement and
                Compliance Assurance, as well as with other client agencies as appropriate,
                to develop a comprehensive environmental justice enforcement strategy,
                which shall seek to provide timely remedies for systemic environmental
                violations and contaminations, and injury to natural resources; and
                (iii) ensure comprehensive attention to environmental justice throughout
                the Department of Justice, including by considering creating an Office of
                Environmental Justice within the Department to coordinate environmental
                justice activities among Department of Justice components and United States
                Attorneys' Offices nationwide.
                 (d) The Secretary of Health and Human Services
                 shall, consistent with applicable law and within
                 existing appropriations:
                (i) establish an Office of Climate Change and Health Equity to address the
                impact of climate change on the health of the American people; and
                (ii) establish an Interagency Working Group to Decrease Risk of Climate
                Change to Children, the Elderly, People with Disabilities, and the
                Vulnerable as well as a biennial Health Care System Readiness Advisory
                Council, both of which shall report their progress and findings regularly
                to the Task Force.
                 (e) The Director of the Office of Science and
                 Technology Policy shall, in consultation with the
                 National Climate Advisor, within existing
                 appropriations, and within 100 days of the date of this
                 order, publish a report identifying the climate
                 strategies and technologies that will result in the
                 most air and water quality improvements, which shall be
                 made public to the maximum extent possible and
                 published on the Office's website.
                 Sec. 223. Justice40 Initiative. (a) Within 120 days of
                 the date of this order, the Chair of the Council on
                 Environmental Quality, the Director of the
                [[Page 7632]]
                 Office of Management and Budget, and the National
                 Climate Advisor, in consultation with the Advisory
                 Council, shall jointly publish recommendations on how
                 certain Federal investments might be made toward a goal
                 that 40 percent of the overall benefits flow to
                 disadvantaged communities. The recommendations shall
                 focus on investments in the areas of clean energy and
                 energy efficiency; clean transit; affordable and
                 sustainable housing; training and workforce
                 development; the remediation and reduction of legacy
                 pollution; and the development of critical clean water
                 infrastructure. The recommendations shall reflect
                 existing authorities the agencies may possess for
                 achieving the 40-percent goal as well as
                 recommendations on any legislation needed to achieve
                 the 40-percent goal.
                 (b) In developing the recommendations, the Chair of
                 the Council on Environmental Quality, the Director of
                 the Office of Management and Budget, and the National
                 Climate Advisor shall consult with affected
                 disadvantaged communities.
                 (c) Within 60 days of the recommendations described
                 in subsection (a) of this section, agency heads shall
                 identify applicable program investment funds based on
                 the recommendations and consider interim investment
                 guidance to relevant program staff, as appropriate and
                 consistent with applicable law.
                 (d) By February 2022, the Director of the Office of
                 Management and Budget, in coordination with the Chair
                 of the Council on Environmental Quality, the
                 Administrator of the United States Digital Service, and
                 other relevant agency heads, shall, to the extent
                 consistent with applicable law, publish on a public
                 website an annual Environmental Justice Scorecard
                 detailing agency environmental justice performance
                 measures.
                 PART III--GENERAL PROVISIONS
                 Sec. 301. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order
                 shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:
                (i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency or
                the head thereof; or
                (ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget,
                relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.
                 (b) This order shall be implemented consistent with
                 applicable law and subject to the availability of
                 appropriations.
                [[Page 7633]]
                 (c) This order is not intended to, and does not,
                 create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural,
                 enforceable at law or in equity by any party against
                 the United States, its departments, agencies, or
                 entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any
                 other person.
                
                
                 (Presidential Sig.)
                 THE WHITE HOUSE,
                 January 27, 2021.
                [FR Doc. 2021-02177
                Filed 1-29-21; 8:45 am]
                Billing code 3295-F1-P