As Prepared for Delivery
We are holding this hearing to take a hard look at the Justice40 Initiative. This was an early priority of the Biden Administration that, quite frankly, has not delivered on its promises. The stated goal was to ensure that 40% of the “benefits” from federal investments in areas like clean energy, housing, and water infrastructure would reach disadvantaged communities. That sounds good on paper, but as we dig deeper, the reality tells a very different story.
This initiative was rolled out with vague goals, unclear definitions, and no real roadmap for success. Agencies were told to implement it without any consistent guidance, leaving bureaucrats to interpret the rules for themselves. A stark example of this can be found in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). A recent report from Goldman Sachs estimates the green subsidies will cost as much as $1.2 trillion, this placed hundreds of billions within the dysfunctional reach of the Justice40 initiative. This left communities wondering what, if anything, was coming their way. That’s not justice, and it’s certainly not effective governance.
Let’s be clear: no one is arguing against helping struggling communities. But if we’re going to spend billions of taxpayer dollars in their name, we owe it to the American people to ask: Did it actually help?
According to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), many of the very communities this program was supposed to serve, found the application process for funding so complicated, costly, and bureaucratic that they gave up altogether. Think about that. A program meant to deliver relief instead became another hurdle.
What’s more, there’s no clear system to even define what counts as a “benefit,” let alone track whether 40% of those benefits actually landed where they were supposed to. You can’t manage what you can’t measure.
GAO made several commonsense recommendations, like streamlining applications, defining performance metrics, and enforcing basic accountability measures. These aren’t radical ideas. In fact, most are already required under existing federal grant rules.
Today, we’ll hear from three witnesses, two of which will help us figure out what actually works, and just as importantly, what doesn’t.
At the end of the day, our job isn’t to rubber-stamp talking points. It’s to ask tough questions, follow the facts, and deliver results for the American people, especially those who’ve been underserved and overlooked for far too long.
Let’s get to it.