FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 30, 2020
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Poll Finds Bipartisan Support for Funding Clean Transportation, Energy Projects to Put People Back to Work
Investment could create millions of jobs
WASHINGTON—After the United States beats the coronavirus, a strong bipartisan majority of voters support investing in clean transportation and energy projects to put people back to work, according to a new SurveyMonkey | Coalition for Green Capital poll. By a 71-to-16 margin, Americans support funding for such projects that would create jobs and combat climate change.
“This poll shows that as soon as we win the Coronavirus War, people want to get America going again by building a clean and better country,” Coalition for Green Capital CEO Reed Hundt said. “That’s what the next stimulus bill needs to give us the tools to do: Create jobs and build a clean future.”
Other key findings from the poll, include:
Creating jobs:
- 83% support funding for construction jobs to put people back to work. Only 8% oppose
- 71% support funding for the construction of clean energy and transportation projects that will create new jobs while also addressing climate change. Only 16% oppose.
Addressing the immediate health care crisis:
- 89% believe that the first priority is to fund health care and medical supplies.
- 91% support extending unemployment benefits and other social safety net measures.
“If Congress funds a National Climate Bank in the next stimulus, we can create more than 5 million new jobs during the next five years in building the clean future with public-private money,” Coalition for Green Capital Executive Director Jeff Schub said.
A nonprofit National Climate Bank, as outlined in H.R. 5416 and S. 2057, would use the proven “green bank” model, deploying public funds to finance clean energy and clean transportation projects. This could be direct or through new or existing state and local green banks. Across the country, there are hundreds of projects that are both ready to go and will need ongoing funding.
This analysis is based on a SurveyMonkey online poll conducted among 627 likely 2020 voters ages 18 and older across the United States between March 23-26. The modeled error estimate for the full sample is ±4 percentage points.
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