NEW REPORT: How Trump’s Policies Hurt Latinos’ Health and Finances

In Trump’s first year, Latino families were hit with lost jobs, higher prices and higher health risks

WASHINGTON — A new report from Climate Power released today found that Trump’s clean energy and climate rollbacks have cost Latinos tens of thousands of jobs, raised their energy bills and increased their exposure to dangerous pollution. The report lays out how the Trump administration has systematically undermined the clean energy manufacturing economy — an industry that employs large numbers of Latinos — and how its attacks on clean energy incentives and community-based assistance have made it harder for Latino families to keep up with rising energy costs. It also details the ways that Trump’s cuts to commonsense pollution safeguards are endangering Latinos’ health now and into the future.

“In less than one year, the Trump administration has put Latino communities under more strain and danger than they were before he took power and for no reason other than to benefit his big oil backers,” said Climate Power En Acción Managing Director Elice Rojas-Cruz. “This report is a reminder that, under Trump, Latinos are drastically worse off in most facets of life. Besides the discrimination and profiling that have come to dominate the Trump administration’s approach to Latino communities, they are also facing economic pains and health risks that are as unnecessary as they are cruel. We hope that this report makes clear just how devastating this administration has been to our community and that it adds urgency to calls for a federal government willing to hold the President accountable, and once again, prioritize the needs of the people over corporate greed and special interests.

Highlights from the report:

• Since Trump’s election, 120 projects in Latino communities have been canceled, delayed, or are laying off staff, representing 62,891 clean energy jobs lost and over $14 billion in lost investment. In total nationwide, 158,816 clean energy jobs have been lost or stalled, and 307 projects have been canceled, delayed, or are laying off staff since November 2024.
• In addition to lost jobs and investment, since Trump took office, at least 32 federal contracts or program grants addressing the impacts of climate change and promoting clean energy in Latino communities have been canceled. These investments represent $1.3 billion in federal funding.  
• Despite Trump’s promises to cut energy prices, household electric bills have skyrocketed by 13%, and residential gas prices have risen by nearly 100% since he took office. These cost hikes disproportionately impact Latino households, who experience an energy burden 20% greater than white households.
• Trump has slashed a range of clean air and water protections, including those for methane and PFAS contamination, exposing already vulnerable Latino communities to more toxic chemicals and their associated health impacts.
• Trump has delivered billions in tax breaks for Big Oil, while gutting 31 pollution protections that save lives and eliminating tax credits and funding for programs that reduce harmful pollution in Latino communities. 
• Trump granted exemptions for 69 coal-fired power plants, exposing Americans to higher levels of at least eight toxic pollutants. Nine of these highly polluting facilities are located in Latino communities, posing a direct threat to Latinos’ health.
• Trump’s targeting of disaster relief programs, agency staffing cuts, and calls to disband FEMA altogether further endanger the safety of Latinos, half of whom are impacted by extreme weather events in the U.S. each year.