Overview
After years of advocacy by the ocean community, the federal government meaningfully invested in ocean climate
action, including through passage of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) in 2022 and the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) in 2021. When President Biden signed the IRA into law, it became the single
biggest investment in climate solutions in U.S. history to boost clean energy, protect, restore ecosystems,
and create climate-ready infrastructure. This builds upon the progress started with the IIJA, which authorized
$1.2 trillion in infrastructure spending and has awarded funding to nearly 37,000 projects throughout the
nation at the time of publication.
These historic investments are continuing to provide funding for coastal cities along the Great Lakes and ocean
to adapt to the climate-induced threats they face. Urban Ocean Lab has identified over $21.7 billion in funds that
cities are eligible to use in implementing ocean climate action projects, $11 billion allocated from the IRA and
$10.7 billion allocated from the IIJA. Cities and other coastal project managers must act quickly to identify and
apply for applicable project funding as many federal programs have already started awarding funds to applicants.
This guidebook is intended to be a concise directory to assist cities in accessing the remaining and ongoing funding
opportunities afforded for ocean climate projects in these two laws.
CREATED BY
KEY DATA
The IRA and IIJA provide coastal cities throughout the country with unprecedented opportunities to adapt and become part of the solution to the climate crisis.
$21.7 billion Available to cities to implement ocean climate action projects
$11 billion Allocated from the IRA
$10.7 billion Allocated from the IIJA
