Josh Brecheen: “This amendment would eliminate funding for the Global Environment Facility at the World Bank, saving American taxpayers…”

“This amendment would eliminate funding for the Global Environment Facility at the World Bank, saving American taxpayers nearly $140 million. This amendment represents a roughly 0.3-percent reduction in spending for the bill overall. The Global Environment Facility is an international fund under the World Bank, which uses donor countries' money to pay for climate agenda projects in developing countries. The United States' contribution to this fund is $140 million for fiscal year 2025. Proponents of global climate initiatives often use phrases like ``shared global responsibility'' to sell programs that cost taxpayers millions and give up American sovereignty to unelected bureaucrats. However, this funding has nothing to do with responsibilities at all. This year's roughly $140 million donation to the GEF is over $10 million more than China's, the world's largest polluter. China has contributed, during the entire 33-year lifetime of the program, less than this year's singular allocation by the United States. Meanwhile, the Congressional Budget Office estimates that the Federal deficit is going to be $1.9 trillion for fiscal year 2024. That is 27 percent greater than CBO projected at the beginning of this year, a $400 billion change in a matter of months. Where is the responsibility to American taxpayers? As Members of Congress, our responsibility is to those taxpayers. We should not be forcing and punting the price tag for this to our kids and our grandkids.…”