U.S. International Climate Finance: FY2024

U.S. International Climate Finance: FY2024

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Updated April 24, 2023
U.S. International Climate Finance: FY2024
U.S. International Climate Finance
The Biden Administration’s
Over the past several decades, to varying degrees, the
International Climate Finance Plan
United States has delivered financial and technical
With Executive Order (E.O.) 14008, “Tackling the Climate
assistance for climate change activities in the developing
Crisis at Home and Abroad,” of February 1, 2021 (86
world through a variety of bilateral and multilateral
Federal Register 7619), President Joe Biden directed that
channels with appropriations passed by Congress and
climate change “shall be an essential element of United
implemented by the executive agencies. Climate finance is
States foreign policy and national security. The United
funded primarily through programs at the Department of
States will work with other countries and partners, both
State, the Department of the Treasury, and the U.S. Agency
bilaterally and multilaterally, to put the world on a
for International Development (USAID). Funds for these
sustainable climate pathway.” As called for by the E.O., the
programs are requested in the President’s budget under the
United States released the U.S. International Climate
International Affairs function (Function 150) and funded
Finance Plan. According to the plan, “climate finance”
through the annual State, Foreign Operations, and Related
refers to “the provision or mobilization of financial
Programs (SFOPS) appropriation. Many activities are
resources to assist developing countries to reduce and/or
funded at agency subaccount levels, with allocations left to
avoid greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and to build
the discretion of the agencies under congressional
resilience and adapt to the impacts of climate change.” The
consultation. Some additional international assistance is
plan includes a strategy for international climate finance
funded at other federal agencies (e.g., U.S. Environmental
with a 2025 horizon; summarizes steps and instruments
Protection Agency; National Aeronautics and Space
through which the U.S. government would mobilize climate
Administration; National Science Foundation; Peace Corps;
finance; and outlines how the U.S. government plans to
U.S. Trade and Development Agency; and Departments of
support climate-aligned finance flows more broadly. In it,
Agriculture, Commerce, and Energy).
the Administration pledged that
[t]he United States intends to double, by 2024, our
U.S. Administrations have typically divided international
climate finance into three main programmatic initiatives or
annual public climate financing to developing
categories:
countries relative to what we were providing during
the second half of the Obama-Biden Administration
 Adaptation: programs that aim to assist low-income
(FY2013-16). As part of this goal, the United States
countries with reducing their vulnerability to climate
intends to triple our adaptation finance by 2024.
change impacts and building climate resilience.
The Biden Administration has since doubled the pledge

again. Speaking at the United Nations General Assembly on
Clean Energy: programs that aim to reduce greenhouse
September 21, 2021, President Biden stated he intends to
gas emissions from energy generation and energy use by
work with Congress to increase annual U.S. climate
accelerating the deployment of clean energy
financing to $11.4 billion annually, an amount he said was
technologies, policies, and practices.
necessary “to support the countries and people that will be

hit the hardest and that have the fewest resources to help
Sustainable Landscapes: programs that aim to reduce
them adapt.”
greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and forest
degradation.
FY2024 Budget Request and Authority
For FY2024, the Biden Administration’s State, Foreign
Congress oversees U.S. government assistance to lower-
Operations, and Related Programs budget request specified
income countries for climate change initiatives.
approximately $4.3 billion in direct and indirect climate
Congressional committees of jurisdiction have included, but
finance from State and USAID accounts and $1.4 billion in
are not limited to, the House Committees on Foreign
direct climate finance from Treasury accounts (Table 1). In
Affairs, Financial Services, and Appropriations and the
December 2022, President Biden signed P.L. 117-328, the
Senate Committees on Foreign Relations and
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023. Funds appropriated
Appropriations. Congress undertakes several activities
by Congress for climate finance in FY2023 totaled not less
regarding international climate change assistance, including
than about $1 billion, although some discretionary spending
(1) authorizing federal agency programs and multilateral
in larger accounts may be categorized as climate-related by
fund contributions, (2) appropriating funds for those
the agencies in future reporting (Table 2). In April 2023,
authorizations, (3) providing guidance to the agencies on
the Biden Administration announced plans to contribute
authorized programs and appropriations, and (4) overseeing
$1.0 billion to the Green Climate Fund with FY2022-
U.S. interests in the programs.
FY2023 budget authority from the State Department’s
Economic Support Fund account.
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Table 1. Climate Finance in the Biden Administration’s FY2024 Budget Request
(in millions of U.S. dol ars)
Agency
Program/Fund
Request
U.S. Department of State and U.S. Agency Sustainable Landscapes
$618.3
for International Development (Direct)a
Adaptation
$1,349.7
Clean Energy
$1,021.8
U.S. Department of State and U.S. Agency (Including Peace and Security; Democracy, Human
$1,336.8
for International Development (Indirect)
Rights, and Governance; Global Health; Education;
Agriculture/Food Security; Other Economic Growth;
Environment; and Disaster Risk Reduction)
U.S. Department of the Treasury (Direct)
Global Environment Facilityb
$143.4
Green Climate Fund
$800.0
Clean Technology Fund
$425.0
MDB Climate Trust Funds and Facilities
$27.0
U.S. Department of the Treasury
(Including Multilateral Development Banks; Food
Unspecified sub-account
(Indirect)
Security; Debt Restructuring; and Technical Assistance)
level funding
Other Agencies
(Including Peace Corps; Mil ennium Challenge
Unspecified sub-account
Corporation; Trade and Development Agency; Export-
level funding
Import Bank; and Development Finance Corporation)
Climate Finance (Total)
Not less than $5,722.0
Source: U.S. Department of State, “Congressional Budget Justification Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs, Fiscal
Year 2024” and “Supplementary Tables, Fiscal Year 2024,” https://www.state.gov/fy-2024-international-affairs-budget/.
Note: For a discussion of U.S. climate finance commitments, see CRS In Focus IF10763, U.S. International Climate Finance: A Primer.
a. “U.S. Department of State and U.S. Agency for International Development (Direct)” includes requested contributions for some
international organizations, including $21.0 mil ion for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change/UN Framework Convention on
Climate Change, $64.0 mil ion for the Montreal Protocol Multilateral Fund; $1.0 mil ion for the World Meteorological Organization; and
$800.0 mil ion for the State Department’s contribution to the Green Climate Fund.
b. The State Department has reported, “Because the Global Environment Facility (GEF) supports multiple environmental goals, only 85
percent of GEF funding is included in the climate finance totals.” Thus, Table I shows $143.4 mil ion of the $168.7 mil ion GEF request.
Table 2. Climate Finance in P.L. 117-328—Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023
(in millions of U.S. dol ars)
Agency
Program/Fund
Funding Levels
Multilateral Assistance: Title V (Subtotal)
$272.7
U.S. Department of the Treasury
Global Environment Facility
$127.7

Green Climate Fund
Unspecified

Clean Technology Fund
$125.0

Tropical Forest Conservation and Coral Reef Act
$20.0
Bilateral Economic Assistance: Title III (Subtotal)
$715.0
U.S. Department of State and U.S. Agency Sustainable Landscapes
Not less than $185.0
for International Development, among
other development agencies
Adaptation
Not less than $270.0
Renewable Energy
Not less than $260.0
Climate Finance (Total)
Not less than $987.7
Source: Congress.gov.
Notes: See Table 1 note, above. Because the Global Environment
Facility (GEF) supports multiple environmental goals, only 85% of GEF
Richard K. Lattanzio, Specialist in Environmental Policy
budget authority ($127.7 mil ion of the $150.2 mil ion appropriation)
IF12036
is included in the climate finance totals.
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U.S. International Climate Finance: FY2024

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https://crsreports.congress.gov | IF12036 · VERSION 10 · UPDATED