Trump is rolling back climate action. These 157 cities are going in the opposite direction

In June 2026, the Trump administration told states that they couldn’t use billions of dollars in Inflation Reduction Act federal rebates to help homeowners switch from fossil fuel appliances to climate-friendly heat pumps. 

But that move didn’t affect a heat pump rebate available in Tacoma, Washington, run by the city and its local power utility.

It’s one example of how, even as the federal government takes a serious step back from climate action under the Trump administration, local leaders on the city and state level are still able to make climate progress with their own policies.

A new database, from the University of Maryland’s Center for Global Sustainability, details such city-level actions. It covers more than 1,400 policies and programs from 157 cities across the country—from building efficiency upgrades to financial incentive programs to climate mitigation actions like increasing shade in cities affected by extreme heat. 

Called the U.S. City Climate & Energy Policy Database, the tool features both a map, which shows which cities have the most climate policies, and a dataset that links out to city plans and categorizes each action by location, sector, and policy area (such as transportation, electricity, or waste, for example). 

“This database gives us the clearest picture yet of how cities across the country are responding to the current moment with policy,” Nate Hultman, director of the Center for Global Sustainability at the University of Maryland, said in a statement.

“What stands out is both the breadth of action and the opportunity it reveals: cities and states are pursuing clean energy and energy efficiency, and understanding that landscape is the first step toward accelerating action where it is needed most,” he added.