The week in climate policy: 5 updates you need to know

Here’s the week in climate policy news:
 

1. States across the country are pushing back against cell-cultured meat. Bills imposing penalties ranging from fines to months in jail for selling goods with the label “cultivated food products” are popping up in states such as Alabama and Arizona. Sixteen states, including Florida, Tennessee and Georgia, have passed bills banning the word “meat” from cell-cultured alternatives, largely due to mounting pressure from the agricultural industry.
2. The Department of Energy’s Loan Program Office (LPO) announced a $72.8 million partial loan to the Viejas Microgrid Project through the Tribal Energy Financing Program.
   
   

   Sophia Davirro/GreenBiz

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   Sophia Davirro/GreenBiz

   The loan will fund the development of a solar-plus-long duration energy storage microgrid on the tribal lands of the Viejas Band of the Kumeyaay Indians in California. The borrower is energy development firm IE VEM Managing Member LLC.

3. A new bill, “The Responsible Use of Seafloor Resources Act of 2024,” was introduced Tuesday in Congress. Sponsored by Republican Reps. Carol Miller of West Virginia and John Joyce of Pennsylvania, the bill is meant to bolster U.S. critical mineral supply chains by supporting the deep-sea mining industry. The legislation calls for the Department of Commerce to audit all current deep-sea mining legislation and federal efforts and present a report to both Congress and the White House for next steps.
4. The Sierra Club is suing the Securities and Exchange Commission over the agency’s new climate-disclosure rule. The environmental advocacy organization is claiming that the rule does not allow investors to “adequately manage their investments without complete information on publicly traded companies’ vulnerability to climate-related risks.” This news comes on the heels of two fracking companies asking for an immediate stay on the newly approved rule. 
5. Bloomberg Philanthropies, a charitable organization run by former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, announced the launch of the Bloomberg American Sustainable Cities Initiative. The initiative will provide $200 million in funds to 25 U.S. cities — including among them Akron, Ohio, Montgomery, Alabama and St. Louis — allowing them to develop and scale new buildings and transportation networks focused on decarbonization. The initiative will also send expert committees to each city to inform and guide the process.