---
title: Households Can’t Afford Donald Trump’s Push for Dirty, Expensive Coal
date: 2026-06-10T08:53:16Z
modified: 2026-06-10T08:53:16Z
permalink: "https://350.org/press-release/households-cant-afford-donald-trumps-push-for-dirty-expensive-coal/"
type: press-release
status: publish
excerpt: ""
wpid: 175530533
author: kimbryan
---

**350.org** today condemned the Trump administration’s plan to spend US$700 million on giant new coal plants, warning that households in the US and worldwide will pay the price through higher electricity bills and worsening health and environmental impacts.

The funding would support a new wave of coal expansion under the guise of powering artificial intelligence. One proposed plant would be built in a pristine part of Alaska, 70 miles from the nearest transmission line, with no existing mine to supply it and no confirmed data centre customer. The package would also fund the reopening of a costly, shuttered coal plant in Maryland and the “modernisation” of another in Puerto Rico.

Campaigners say the plan exposes the myth that coal is a cheap energy source. In reality, coal is rapidly being outcompeted. A 2023 report by Energy Innovation found that [**99% of the existing US coal fleet is more expensive to run than replacing it with new wind or solar** ](https://www.forbes.com/sites/energyinnovation/2023/01/30/99-of-us-coal-plants-are-more-expensive-than-new-renewables-a-coal-to-clean-transition-is-worth-589-billion-mostly-in-red-states/)a trend that has only intensified. Today, the cost of coal generation in the US is nearly double that of utility-scale solar.

Beyond energy bills, coal imposes enormous hidden costs. Research from the Harvard Center for Health and the Global Environment estimates that coal production costs the US up to [**$500 billion annually** ](https://e360.yale.edu/digest/coal-costs-us-half-trillion-annually-in-hidden-costs-study-says)in health, economic, and environmental damages, with air pollution from coal-fired power plants alone responsible for $187 billion in health impacts each year.

**Anne Jellema, Executive Director, 350.org**

“Spending hundreds of millions of dollars to lock Americans into one of the most expensive and polluting energy sources on the market is not a plan to ease the cost of living , it’s a reckless gamble with taxpayers’ money that is doomed to fail. American households don’t need a coal industry on life support. They need a renewable energy boom that lowers bills for good.”

350.org also warned that a US coal revival would have global consequences, driving up emissions and encouraging continued reliance on volatile, expensive fossil fuels.

**Candice Fortin, Energy Affordability Campaign Manager, 350.org**

“Households worldwide are already paying the price for fossil fuels through energy shocks, record heatwaves, and a climate crisis they did nothing to cause. Forcing taxpayers to bankroll a coal comeback on top of that isn’t just bad policy, it’s a global injustice. Coal also hits our wallets as far as healthcare costs with an estimated $187 million to combat coal-related illness such as cancer and black lung disease. Every dollar spent on coal is a dollar not invested in cheaper, safer renewable energy.”

350.org is calling on governments to redirect public investment toward renewable energy, which can create jobs, cut energy bills, reduce climate harm, and improve public health , particularly for communities living near polluting coal infrastructure.

**About 350.org**

350.org is a global climate justice movement building the power to stop fossil fuel expansion and accelerate the equitable transition to clean energy. Our campaigns span more than 180 countries.

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