Biden-Harris Administration Unveils $7.3 Billion Clean Energy Investment for Rural Electrification, Largest Since the New Deal

WESTBY, WI, September 5, 2024 – On a visit to Wisconsin, President Joe Biden, alongside U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack, announced over $7.3 billion in financing for rural electric cooperatives aimed at fostering clean energy projects in rural communities throughout the nation via the Empowering Rural America (New ERA) program. This initiative, combined with other investments under the President’s Inflation Reduction Act, constitutes the largest commitment to rural electrification since the Rural Electrification Act was enacted in 1936 by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt as part of the New Deal.

Through this announcement, the selected 16 cooperatives will stimulate over $29 billion in private investments to generate more than 10 gigawatts of clean energy for rural areas nationwide. These projects are projected to prevent the release of at least 43.7 million tons of greenhouse gases each year, equivalent to taking more than 10 million vehicles off the roads annually.

“The Biden-Harris Administration is dedicated to fostering a promising future for rural communities by accelerating the transition to clean energy, reducing monthly expenses, and generating good jobs and apprenticeships,” stated Secretary Vilsack. “With partnerships like the one we have with Dairyland, one out of every five rural Americans will directly benefit from these investments in clean energy. This is a clear commitment to empowering rural America.”

“The Inflation Reduction Act represents the most significant investment in rural electrification since the New Deal era in the 1930s,” emphasized John Podesta, Senior Advisor to the President for International Climate Policy. “The funding announced today will ensure that rural Americans have access to clean, affordable, and reliable energy across the nation.”

These initiatives will not only create quality jobs and lower energy expenses for rural communities but will also significantly cut pollution, enhance the resilience of America’s electrical grid, and align with the Biden-Harris Administration’s Justice40 Initiative. The selected cooperatives will utilize New ERA funds to:

• Provide cleaner, more affordable, and more reliable energy to approximately 5 million households across 23 states, which constitutes 20% of the nation’s rural households, farms, businesses, and schools. The states benefitting from this announcement include Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
• Generate over 4,500 permanent positions and 16,000 construction jobs.
• Cut pollution by 2.9 billion tons throughout the lifespan of these projects, translating to over 43.7 million tons of greenhouse gases annually—comparable to the emissions of more than 10 million gasoline-powered vehicles.
• Construct or acquire more than 10 gigawatts of clean energy sources, including 3,723 megawatts of wind, 4,733 megawatts of solar, 804 megawatts of nuclear, and 357 megawatts of hydropower, while also making necessary investments in transmission, substation enhancements, and resource management software. These moves will reduce energy costs for rural Americans and bolster grid resilience to meet rising energy demands and support President Biden’s manufacturing comeback.
• Develop 1,892 megawatt-hours of battery storage to improve grid reliability and significantly decrease local outage durations.

The initial group of selected cooperatives and their respective states include:

• Allegheny Electric Cooperative Inc. – Pennsylvania and New Jersey
• Arizona Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. – Arizona, California, Nevada, and New Mexico
• Basin Electric Power Cooperative – Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota
• Buckeye Power, Inc. – Ohio
• CORE Electric Cooperative – Colorado
• Dairyland Power Cooperative – Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, and Minnesota
• East Kentucky Power Cooperative – Kentucky
• Golden Valley Electric Association – Alaska
• Great River Energy – Minnesota, North Dakota, and Wisconsin
• Hoosier Energy – Indiana and Michigan
• Minnkota Power Cooperative – North Dakota and Minnesota
• San Miguel Electric Cooperative Inc. – Texas
• Seminole Electric Cooperative, Inc. – Florida
• Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, Inc. – Colorado, New Mexico, Nebraska, and Wyoming
• United Power – Colorado
• Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative – Michigan

For further details about these selections, click here.

Funding Details for Dairyland Power Cooperative

Included in today’s announcement is a pioneering award from the New ERA program, granting nearly $573 million to Dairyland Power Cooperative. The organization anticipates that their electric rates will be 42% lower over the next decade due to this New ERA funding.

Dairyland Power Cooperative is set to use this funding to catalyze a comprehensive investment of $2.1 billion, aimed at launching projects totaling 1,080 megawatts. This includes eight power purchase agreements and the establishment of both solar and wind power installations across Dairyland’s operational territory.

The cooperative is committed to collaborating with labor partners on its New ERA initiatives, working alongside the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), Northern Wisconsin Building and Construction Trades, Wisconsin Building Trades Council, and the Wisconsin Pipe Trades Association. Furthermore, Dairyland’s New ERA project proposes a Farmer Benefit Plan and a Union Engagement Plan, which will be co-developed with stakeholders through a Community Benefit Plan in partnership with the University of Wisconsin-Madison Clean Energy Community Initiative.

USDA Rural Development Investments

The USDA Rural Development aims to provide loans and grants that enhance economic prospects, create job opportunities, and elevate the quality of life for millions living in rural areas. This support encompasses a wide range of initiatives, from infrastructure improvements and business development to community facilities like schools and healthcare as well as high-speed internet access in rural, Tribal, and high-poverty regions. Explore the Rural Data Gateway to see where these investments are making an impact in rural America.

These new investments, facilitated through the Inflation Reduction Act, are integral to the Biden-Harris Administration’s mission to make USDA programs more inclusive and accessible, ensuring that the benefits of these initiatives will reverberate for generations. Many of these efforts align with the Biden-Harris Administration’s Justice40 Initiative, which strives to advance environmental justice by guaranteeing that 40% of the overall benefits from targeted federal climate and clean energy investments reach disadvantaged and pollution-burdened communities.

USDA plays a vital role in enhancing the lives of all Americans daily in numerous positive ways. Under the Biden-Harris Administration, it is committed to reforming America’s food system for increased resilience in local and regional food production, creating equitable markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe and nutritious food across all communities, and investing heavily in infrastructure and clean energy solutions in rural areas while promoting equity throughout the department.

To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.

USDA anticipates that it will continue to issue New ERA and Powering Affordable Clean Energy (PACE) program awards in the forthcoming months.

To stay updated on USDA Rural Development announcements, visit the GovDelivery subscriber page.

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