RI Senate passes first major climate bill in 7 years
Here
are their statements
The bill is a long overdue update to the 2014 Resilient Rhode Island Act to address climate-warming carbon emissions.
It revises emission-reduction targets according to the latest
science, improves transparency, and adds accountability to ensure that state
climate goals are met over the next thirty years. And for the first time, the
bill centers equity and justice in the state’s plans for reducing emissions and
building climate resilience.
“The
Act On Climate bill provides Rhode Island with the necessary foundation to
support the state’s rapid transition away from fossil fuels and to a green
economy. We’re especially pleased with the accountability and transparency
built into the bill so all Rhode Islanders can see the state’s progress and
hold our leaders accountable,” said Meg Kerr, former President of the
Environment Council of Rhode Island and Sr. Director of Policy at Audubon
Society of RI.
The
climate crisis is here: Rhode Island is experiencing more warming than any
other state in the contiguous U.S. Ocean warming is starting to hurt our marine
industries, and communities across the state are at risk of flooding and
extreme weather. The impacts of climate change most severely harm our frontline
communities—especially Black, People of Color and Indigenous communities, poor
and working families, and those who have historically borne environmental
injustice. Rhode Island cannot wait to address the climate crisis.
"The best time for our leaders to have acted on climate
was twenty years ago, but the second-best time is now, to paraphrase an old
proverb. It took many years for advocates, champions in
the General Assembly, and tens of thousands of Rhode Islanders to build
the support needed to pass this monumental legislation. When this bill becomes
law, we will finally have the framework in place to meaningfully and
equitably address the climate crisis—then the real hard work
begins," said Johnathan Berard, Rhode Island Director of Clean Water
Action and member of the Environment Council of RI.
The
2021 Act On Climate is the foundation for Rhode Island to transform every
sector of its economy to avoid the worst impacts of the climate crisis. With a
binding mandate to reduce emissions, environmental advocates expect Act On
Climate to dramatically accelerate climate action in the Ocean State.
The
Environment Council of RI is thrilled to see climate action early in the
legislative session. We call on the House to pass it swiftly and Governor McKee
to sign the 2021 Act On Climate into law by Earth Day, April 22nd.
Rhode
Island voters are counting on legislators and decision makers to take climate
action now. In fact, the COVID-19 Consortium for Understanding the Public’s
Policy Preferences Across States confirmed that Rhode Island voters
considered climate change the second most important problem facing the country,
with COVID-19 being the first.
In
2020, the Environment Council of RI, a coalition of 70 environmental
organizations and individuals representing 50,000 Rhode Islanders, made the Act
On Climate bill its sole legislative priority. The council also launched the Climate
Crisis Campaign project with the support of 29 organizations and
businesses across different sectors. The Climate Crisis Campaign called upon
the Rhode Island government to take immediate action to dramatically reduce
greenhouse gas emissions by phasing out fossil fuels, creating a just and
equitable transition to a sustainable economy, and investing in adaptation and
resilience to protect the people and places we love. The campaign continues to
mobilize advocates and Rhode Islanders in support of the Act On Climate bill.
The
2020 version of the bill had significant momentum before COVID-19 ended the
legislative session prematurely. After yet another year of inaction, the
urgency of the climate crisis drove over 700 Rhode Islanders to voice their
support for the 2021 Act On Climate, representing every House and Senate
District in the State.
New
language in the 2021 Act On Climate bill calls for the transition to a clean
energy future to be just and equitable. A just and equitable transition means
replacing dirty fossil-fuel based jobs with clean energy jobs that pay
prevailing wage; delivering renewable energy at lower cost to families and
businesses; and investing in reliable transit service that connects essential
workers and other working people to economic opportunities.
“It’s
time to take climate action. The climate crisis is here along with the existing
racial and economic inequities and environmental injustices that have been
exacerbated by the pandemic,” said Priscilla De La Cruz, President of the Environment
Council of RI and RI Director at Green Energy Consumers Alliance. The bill
calls for the inclusion of environmental justice populations and a process for
environmental justice communities to provide input on concrete plans. The
mandated plans will identify support for workers in the transition as well as
the development of programs to recruit, train, and retain women, people of
color, Indigenous people, veterans, formerly incarcerated people, and people
living with disabilities in jobs related to a clean energy economy.
When
the 2021 Act On Climate becomes law, the Environment Council of RI aims to have
a new set of top priorities to help the state achieve the binding goals
established by the bill and protect environmental justice communities. Act On
Climate begins our race to address the climate crisis; we look to Rhode
Island’s leaders and passionate residents to build policies and programs that
will take us the rest of the way.
What
Can You Do?
Contact
Governor McKee (governor@governor.ri.gov , and your own
State Representative (www.rilin.state.ri.us/representatives) to
encourage them to support the 2021 Act On Climate bill H5445 by Representative
Lauren Carson and S78-Sub A by Senator Dawn Euer. Thank you!
###
About
the Environment Council of Rhode Island
The
Environment Council of Rhode Island is a coalition of organizations and
individuals whose mission is to serve as an effective voice for developing and
advocating policies and laws that protect and enhance the environment. www.environmentcouncilri.org
Climate Jobs Rhode Island Celebrates the Passage of the Act on Climate in the Rhode Island State Senate
Climate Jobs Rhode Island, a coalition of environmental and labor organizations, released the following statement after the Act on Climate (2021-S 78 SUB A) passed the Rhode Island State Senate this afternoon.
Climate Jobs Rhode Island commends the vote in the Rhode Island State Senate today to pass the Act on Climate. This important piece of legislation takes meaningful steps to ensuring Rhode Island establishes a just transition to a net-zero emission economy. We applaud Senator Dawn Euer, Chairperson of the Senate Environment and Agriculture Committee, Senate President Ruggerio, Majority Leader McCaffrey, Senate Majority Whip Goodwin, and all of the Senators who voted to support the bill.
Patrick Crowley, Co-Chair of Climate Jobs Rhode Island and Secretary-Treasurer of the Rhode Island AFL-CIO, said, “This bill is a critical step forward for Rhode Island. Our state can lead the way for the rest of the country towards establishing a just transition to a net-zero emission economy centered on racial & social justice and the voices of the people who are most affected by pollution—frontline workers and frontline communities. We encourage the House of Representatives to move quickly to pass the Act on Climate and hope Governor Dan McKee will sign the bill on or before Earth Day this year!”
Priscilla
De La Cruz, Co-Chair of Climate Jobs Rhode Island and Rhode Island Director of
Green Energy Consumers Alliance, said, “Thank you to the Rhode Island State
Senate for taking the next step towards ensuring our state leads by example and
holds itself accountable. We need a solid foundation and a comprehensive plan
to address the climate crisis. A plan that is economy-wide, enforceable and
sets us on a path to a just and equitable transition to a green and sustainable
economy that leaves no one behind. So, we hope the Rhode Island House of
Representatives moves swiftly to pass the Act on Climate and urge Governor
McKee to sign the bill as soon as it reaches his desk.”
Climate Jobs Rhode Island was formed in 2021 as a coalition of labor and environmental organizations to work together to establish a Just Transition to a Green Economy in Rhode Island. We commit to work together to make Rhode Island a national leader in the development of a 21st Century economy grounded in the principles of economic, environmental, racial and social justice.