
NEVADA — The U.S. Senate today narrowly passed an extreme budget bill that threatens to raise electricity costs for Nevada families, eliminate thousands of clean energy jobs, and stall billions in local investment. While Senators Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen voted to protect Nevada’s clean energy economy and warned of its devastating economic impacts, the Republicans’ budget bill still advanced, and is one step closer to handing more tax breaks to billionaire polluters and leaving working families paying the price.
While marginally different from the U.S. House’s version, the Senate budget bill continues dismantling key tax credits that helped bring electricity costs down, build a workforce that stretches from Sparks to Sloan, and expand operations for local businesses. Since these federal tax credits were signed into law in 2022, Nevada has attracted $15.5 billion in clean energy investment and created more than 21,700 new, good-paying jobs in battery manufacturing, solar, EV, and grid upgrades. At a time when Nevada is facing the nation’s second-highest unemployment rate, this bill would crush manufacturing, threaten jobs, and forfeit our clean energy industry to other countries.
Nevadans are already paying some of the highest energy bills in the country, and with another summer of extreme heat underway, a recent report shares that customers will be hit with another year of record-high prices for home cooling. With NV Energy seeking yet another rate hike, families are bracing for even higher costs. If these cuts are enacted, Nevada households are projected to see an increase of $289 in annual energy costs by 2030, the second-highest in the country.
The uncertain future of clean energy tax credits threatens to stall nearly 800 clean energy projects across the country, many of them in Republican-held districts that have seen the biggest gains. Nevada’s Congressional District 2, Rep. Mark Amodei’s district, alone accounts for over $11 billion in clean energy investment and more than 15,000 new clean energy jobs — the most of any GOP-held district in the nation. Yet, the Congressman voted to gut those very investments in the House version of this bill and then joined his Republican colleagues in urging the Senate to preserve clean energy tax credits, warning that this uncertainty would trigger project cancellations.
Clean energy advocates across Nevada are calling on Rep. Amodei and other lawmakers to reject a final budget that puts polluters over people. The bill now returns to the U.S. House, where both chambers will begin negotiating its final provisions in the weeks ahead.
“From the start, this extreme budget bill has been a blatant attack on Nevada’s economy, our clean energy future, and on every working family struggling to keep up with rising costs under a reckless administration,” said Jarrett Clark, spokesperson for For Our Future Nevada. “Senators Cortez Masto and Rosen did the right thing by voting no. Meanwhile, MAGA Republicans rammed through a plan to pad the pockets of billionaires, leaving Nevadans to sweat through another brutal summer with record-high utility bills, job losses, and clean energy progress put on ice. Nevada isn’t some pawn in their rigged, corporate-driven agenda. House Representatives like Mark Amodei need to wake up and remember who they work for – their constituents, the people of Nevada, not MAGA cronies and their billionaire backers.
“Once again, billionaire donors and corporate polluters are pushing an extreme agenda — and it’s Nevada families who will pay the price,” said Angelyn Tabalba, Clean Energy Plan Consultant for the Nevada Conservation League. “If this bill becomes law, it will drive up our energy bills, send good-paying clean energy jobs out of state, and sabotage the very investments that are helping our communities thrive. Today, Senators Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen stood firm for hardworking families. Now, we demand Rep. Amodei and every member of Congress do the same and fix this mess before more damage is done.”
“They can call it a Big Beautiful Bill, but for Nevada families, it’s a ticking time bomb,” said Taylor Patterson, Executive Director with Native Voters Alliance NV. “We thank our Senators for seeing it for what it is: an additional $2.4 trillion to the deficit to fund permanent tax breaks for billionaires and corporations – leaving working Americans to pick up the tab. And we know what comes next: pressure to slash Social Security, Medicare, and the services that keep our communities afloat. This isn’t relief for Nevadans. It’s a handout for the ultra-wealthy at our expense. The richest Americans will sail away richer, while everyday families are left bracing for the fallout.”
“Nevadans are living through record-breaking, suffocating heat and our utility bills are rising just as fast as the temperatures,” said Eric Jeng, Executive Director of One APIA Nevada. “In the face of this climate crisis, we should be doing everything possible to ease the burden on working families. Instead, this extreme budget bill rips away clean energy investments that help people lower their bills and stay safe. We thank Senators Cortez Masto and Rosen for standing up for hardworking families as it is outrageous to make Nevada families pay the price of this bill both physically and financially. We are not expendable, and Nevadans deserve choices that prioritize people over profits.”
“It’s unacceptable that as families are struggling to pay for basic necessities like air conditioning, the Senate voted to raise our electricity bills even higher,” said Audrey Peral, Program Director of Chispa Nevada. “This budget punishes working Nevadans so billionaires can get a tax break and ICE can break up more families. More Nevadans will go bankrupt trying to keep our homes at a bearable temperature in two of the fastest warming cities in the country. More pollution will fill our environment while we choke on smoke from wildfires. Thousands of Nevadans will lose their jobs, but corporate polluters got the laws they wanted. We thank Senator Cortez Masto and Senator Rosen for their votes, and call on Congressman Amodei to stand up for our families and undo this damage.”
“Nevada’s clean energy economy is under attack — and we’re grateful Senators Cortez Masto and Rosen stood up for Nevada families instead of caving to corporate polluters,” said André Combie, States Managing Director for Climate Power. “This budget bill guts clean energy investments that created over 21,000 good-paying jobs and lowered utility costs across our state. It’s nothing more than a handout to Big Oil at the expense of working people. Now it’s up to the House to stop this MAGA-led assault on Nevada’s future. Will Mark Amodei defend the jobs and investments in his district, or will he continue to play political games with Nevada’s future?”
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About For Our Future Nevada
For Our Future Nevada is a progressive, issue-driven organizing hub dedicated to building power for working families and improving their communities. By working to secure workers’ rights, improve public education, protect our environment, and promote affordable health care, For Our Future mobilizes Nevadans to fight for and create lasting change in the Silver State.
About Nevada Conservation League
The Nevada Conservation League is the independent voice of Nevada’s conservation community. We work to maintain and enhance the character of Nevada and the quality of life for Nevadans through effective advocacy, the election of pro-conservation candidates, and building collaboration. www.nevadaconservationleague.org
About Native Voters Alliance of Nevada
A rising powerhouse in the Nevada political landscape, Native Voters Alliance Nevada (NVAN) is dedicated to forging a dynamic Native ecosystem and fostering political strength within Indigenous communities. We serve as a resonating platform for urban and Tribal Nation voices, guiding elections, molding legislation, and championing tribal sovereignty. Join us in our empowering journey and learn more at https://nativevotesnv.org/.
About One APIA Nevada
Founded in June 2018, One APIA Nevada is a grassroots nonprofit advocating for policies empowering everyday Asian American, Native Hawaiian & Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Nevadans. One APIA Nevada coordinates local and national organizations’ in-state electoral efforts, engages in direct voter contact, and uplifts the voices of the AANHPI community through issue advocacy and holding elected officials accountable. For more information about One APIA Nevada, visit oneapianevada.org or @oneapianevada on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or TikTok.
About Chispa Nevada
Chispa Nevada is a program of the League of Conservation Voters that builds the power of Latine communities to fight for clean air, clean energy and a healthy environment that can sustain us today and for generations to come.
About Climate Power
Climate Power is an independent strategic communications and paid media operation focused on building the political will and public support for bold climate action. Climate Power integrates hard-hitting research, polling, state and national earned media, digital and paid media to influence the national conversation, embolden leaders to take immediate, bold climate action, and expose climate deniers and their oil and gas lobby allies. www.forourfuturenv.org