What clean energy action will you celebrate with?

Everyone in Illinois can be proud and celebrate this month's anniversary of the sweeping climate provisions in the 2022 federal Inflation Reduction Act. Illinois led the way with our Climate and Equitable Jobs Act in 2021. We proved that good-paying jobs can go hand-in-hand with reducing carbon emissions.

Voters in 2022 remembered that the Inflation Reduction Act passed without the help of any Republicans in Congress. Voters will continue to remember, because in 2023, the wildfire smoke permeating our area is literally keeping this issue in our faces. (This summer, each morning when I see a haze outside, I check airnow.gov to see how unhealthy the wildfire smoke will be.)

In addition to using your vote to support clean energy, see what the Inflation Reduction Act offers (tax credits, funding, job training, etc.) to help you take a clean energy action.

I celebrated the Inflation Reduction Act by making the leap to solar, but that's just one of a multitude of ways to keep the momentum going toward a viable future environment. There's a lot to do, but at least one action by each of us can go a long way.

Amy Hartsough

Hoffman Estates