Green Climate Fund Authorization Act of 2025
Green Climate Fund Authorization Act of 2025 would authorize the United States to contribute to the Green Climate Fund (GCF), the multilateral fund created under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change to help developing countries reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to climate change. The bill authorizes $4 billion for each of fiscal years 2026 and 2027 to be contributed to the GCF and frames climate financing as essential to global climate action, with an emphasis on environmental justice, human rights, gender equality, and the participation of affected communities. It defines key terms (climate financing, GCF, Paris Agreement) and sets policy requirements to ensure that funded projects incorporate safeguards and respect for Indigenous peoples and other marginalized groups. Importantly, this is an authorization bill; while it expresses a funding level, actual spending would require separate appropriations by Congress. The bill also stresses that current and future climate financing needs are greater than the authorized amounts, signaling a call for greater financial action beyond the specified years. It situates US participation in the GCF as part of a broader commitment to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement and to support both mitigation (reducing emissions) and adaptation (dealing with impacts) in developing countries.
Key Points
- 1Short title: Establishes the act as the Green Climate Fund Authorization Act of 2025.
- 2Authorization of appropriations: Authorizes $4,000,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2026 and 2027 to be contributed to the Green Climate Fund.
- 3Sense of Congress: Declares that the overall climate financing needs to achieve the Paris Agreement goals (limiting warming to 1.5°C) are significantly greater than the authorized funding.
- 4Policy commitments for climate financing: Requires that US climate financing uphold environmental justice and climate justice; support recipient country programs with free, prior, and informed consent of affected communities; promote gender equality; include robust environmental and social safeguards to protect human rights; and address both mitigation and adaptation.
- 5Definitions and scope: Defines climate financing (new, additional public funds for mitigation, carbon sequestration, and adaptation), Green Climate Fund (the UNFCCC-established fund), and the Paris Agreement (as interpreted for purposes of the act).