House Republicans on Friday opened an investigation into President Biden’s newly formed American Climate Corps, a program that will provide government-funded jobs to train more than 20,000 young people in its first year for careers in green energy and the environment.
House Oversight and Accountability Committee Chairman James Comer of Kentucky and fellow Republican panel member Rep. Pete Sessions of Texas requested documents and information from AmeriCorps CEO Michael Smith, a federal agency that will help run the Climate Corps.
The lawmakers questioned the legality of the program because it was not authorized under a law created by Congress, a departure from the Roosevelt-era Civilian Conservation Corps that Mr. Biden’s program is modeled after.
The Washington Times obtained a copy of the letter.
It asked AmeriCorps to turn over documents revealing the total cost of Climate Corps and all communications with partnering federal agencies, state governments and advocacy groups.
The lawmakers want the information by no later than Oct. 27.
Mr. Comer and Mr. Sessions also requested a staff-level briefing no later than Oct. 20.
AmeriCorps did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Mr. Biden created the Climate Corps through an executive order on Sept. 20. Three weeks later, the White House said it had received more than 42,000 applicants mostly from those aged 18-35.
Administration officials declined to reveal how much it will cost or where the money will come from. The president unsuccessfully sought to include a multibillion-dollar Climate Corps in Democrats’ tax and climate spending law named the Inflation Reduction Act.
“We’re opening up pathways to good-paying careers, lifetimes of being involved in the work of making our communities more fair, more sustainable, more resilient,” White House climate adviser Ali Zaidi told reporters last month.
The specific types of jobs young Americans will be trained for are also largely unknown. Some examples given by the administration included training to install solar panels, restore coastal wetlands and work as an electrician for green technologies. The White House also wants to focus on environmental justice, but it’s unclear what sort of specific jobs that would entail.
One of the first acts under Climate Corps will be a partnership between AmeriCorps and the U.S. Forest Service to create a $15 million Forest Corps. Beginning in summer 2024 with 80 hires, participants will be paid roughly $15 per hour plus lodging and other perks to learn about forest and grassland management.
Five additional federal agencies will participate in the Climate Corps: Departments of Labor, Interior, Energy and Agriculture, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association.
The Climate Corps will operate in 10 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, Utah and Washington.
• Ramsey Touchberry can be reached at rtouchberry@washingtontimes.com.
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