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Local Leaders Highlight Federal Inflation Reduction Act Opportunities and Challenges
June 24, 2024
On June 6, ULI Philadelphia and Green Building United (GBU) brought together 50+ local leaders and subject-matter experts to discuss the implications of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), the largest federal investment in climate action in U.S. history.
Photo By Katie Bartolotta, PEA
Attendees at the ULI & GBU Inflation Reduction Act Program
Why now?
Passed in 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act is expected to invest hundreds of billions – yes, with a b! – of dollars in the clean economy of the 21st century. This funding will cover everything from electrified heavy industry to tree planting and foresting investments. In Philadelphia, where more than 70% of carbon emissions come from buildings and the electricity grid powering them, it is important to understand the role the real estate community can play in taking advantage of this new funding.
At this crucial moment at the onset of IRA implementation, ULI Philadelphia and GBU were excited to bring together members and industry leaders to unpack what equitable implementation of the IRA will look like in our region.
Who did we hear from?
The day’s program kicked off with opening remarks from Philadelphia City Councilmember Jamie Gauthier, who discussed the importance of climate investment in her council district in West Philadelphia and citywide. Councilmember Gauthier highlighted the legacy of economic disinvestment and environmental damage in Philadelphia— and the opportunity & responsibility the IRA represents for reversing that legacy.
Two national experts, Ben Evans with the U.S. Green Building Council and Kara Kokernak with the Urban Land Institute’s Randall Lewis Center for Sustainability, discussed the history and breadth of the IRA. Katie Bartolotta from the Philadelphia Energy Authority (PEA) brought this context to the local level, sharing insights into ways the IRA will support new programs to decarbonize our region’s buildings and provide opportunities for affordable solar energy.
The program concluded with a panel discussion, moderated by Ariella Maron of the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, highlighting what IRA implementation will look like in practice. Industry leaders included Laura Slutsky from Guidehouse, Vidhi Anderson from HumanGood, and Lisa Shulock from PEA covered their experiences thus far taking advantage of IRA programs and incentives. View biographies of every speaker on the event page here.
Program Speakers
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Ben Evans, Federal Legislative Director, U.S. Green Building Council
Photo By ULI
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Councilmember Jamie Gauthier, Chair of City Council’s Committee on the Environment
Photo By ULI
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Kara Kokernak, Senior Director, Randall Lewis Center for Sustainability, Urban Land Institute
Photo By ULI
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Katie Bartolotta, Vice President of Policy and Strategic Partnerships, Philadelphia Energy Authority
Photo By ULI
Photo By ULI
Panel conversation, IRA In Action: Case Studies and How it’s Used Today
What did we learn?
In discussion with the panelists and the audience, several key themes emerged:
- The Inflation Reduction Act is not a single stream of funding, but rather a multitude of grant-funded initiatives, tax rebates and incentives, and financing vehicles intended to scale the clean energy transition.
- There is still significant uncertainty around when IRA programs and incentives are launching, and which building typologies they will support. In many cases, guidance from the federal government is still forthcoming or evolving.
- Even where these details are known, there is still a considerable gap where more support is needed to ensure funds are equitably distributed to communities in our region who need them most.
- Within the market, there are still questions about how to plan for this funding with the pending federal election this fall. While the experts on the panel believe most of the IRA will stay intact regardless of who is in control in Washington DC in 2025, there are risks and uncertainties in implementation that must be considered.
What’s next?
Throughout the program, ULI and GBU staff collected many of the excellent resources that were being shared by presenters and panelists. You can find those linked at the bottom of this post.
We also heard the importance of having an entity to help reduce confusion around the IRA and support local implementation. GBU is evaluating needs around such an entity locally, and is conducting a survey right now – please share your thoughts!
Finally, this program underscored the importance of regional and organizational collaboration, and we are excited to be working together again this fall with our partners at AIA Philadelphia and the Preservation Alliance of Greater Philadelphia on the second annual Urban Resilience Forum. Please save the date for this event on September 12.
Resources
Bipartisan Policy Center – “What Does the Inflation Reduction Act Mean for Housing?
https://bipartisanpolicy.org/blog/inflation-reduction-act-mean-for-housing/
U.S. Green Building Council – “Inflation Reduction Act: Buildings Provisions”
https://www.usgbc.org/resources/inflation-reduction-act-buildings-provisions
Guidehouse – “Groundbreaking New Funds for Housing and Communities in the Inflation Reduction Act”
https://guidehouse.com/insights/energy/2023/new-funds-for-housing-in-the-inflation-reduction-act
Urban Land, “Leveraging Federal Funding Opportunities for Sustainable Development” –
Environmental Protection Agency – https://www.epa.gov/inflation-reduction-act
The Real Estate Roundtable – https://www.rer.org/wp-content/uploads/IRA-Fact-Sheet-8-16-22.pdf?Status=Master&sfvrsn=68b2288_3
Green Building United Regional Building Energy Hub survey: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=vHz5Xy6OdEyt-H7S7ht233Up8ZRrEKxDmOmKAcVc6bhUNjVJV1RORUpDWEk1WFA2U1E0VE5OV0ZUMi4u