The Climate Change Education Act dies in Congress

S. 4117 and H.R. 7946, the Senate and the House versions of the Climate Change Education Act, died in committee on January 3, 2025, when the 118th Congress adjourned sine die. The identical bills would have authorized the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to institute a competitive grant program aimed in part at developing and improving educational material and teacher preparation on the topic of climate change.

Among the findings listed in the bills are "[T]he evidence for human-induced climate change is overwhelming and undeniable" and "Only 30 percent of middle school and 45 percent of high school science teachers understand the extent of the scientific consensus on climate change" — a reference to the NCSE/Penn State survey of climate change educators (PDF).

S. 4117 was sponsored by Edward J. Markey (D-Massachusetts) and 20 of his colleagues in the Senate. H.R. 7946 was sponsored by Debbie Dingell (D-Michigan) and nine of her colleagues in the House. Similar climate change education bills in Congress from previous years include S. 966 in 2021, S. 477 in 2019, S. 2740 in 2018, H.R. 2310 in 2021, H.R. 2349 in 2019, and H.R. 5606 in 2018.