EcoChamber’s Current Advocacy Issues

“If there is to be an ecologically sound society, it will have to come from the grass roots up, not from the top down.” Paul Hawken

EcoChamber is committed to advocating for sound pro-business pro-environment legislation. This change must start with the single largest energy consumer in the United State and that is our Government. We will diligently work to encourage eco-progress and with your support, together we can make a difference.

Below are the three top initiatives we support. Please send us your thoughts and feedback as this is a team effort.

Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant

Under the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program funded for the first time under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, $2.8 billion in formula grants are now available to U.S. states, territories, local governments, and Indian tribes,. This grant provides funds to local and state governments, Indian tribes, and territories to develop and implement projects to improve energy efficiency and reduce energy use and fossil fuel emissions in their communities.  The funding of the EECBG Program through the stimulus package and proposed in the President’s FY 2010 budget provides an opportunity for cities and counties to invest in green buildings and sustainable energy projects.

Congress provided long awaited funding to a program that was created four years ago by the 2005 Energy Policy Act under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.  The stimulus package provided a total of $3.2 billion for the program, of which $2.8 billion has been allocated under the existing formula.  The other $400 million will be competitively awarded to states and local governments primarily targeting cities with a population exceeding 35,000 and counties with a population greater than 200,000.

These block grants fund public building renovation projects that install more energy efficient building technologies and materials, energy efficient technology demonstration projects, and onsite technology that generates electricity from renewable resources. It provides the opportunity for energy savings and cost reductions to states and local governments.

EcoChamber supports the full funding of the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant and urges the Obama Administration and 111^th Congress to provide adequate funding in the FY 2010 appropriations bill for the program to benefit more needy communities.

Highway Bill

Recent reports indicate that traffic congestion costs the U.S. $87.2 billion annually, more than $750 per traveler. Economic costs of traffic congestion have increased 63% over the last ten years. Despite declining traffic volumes caused by the economic downturn Americans are still wasting more than 2.8 billion gallons of fuel and 4.2 billion hours each year as a result of traffic congestion.

The EcoChamber believes that highway improvements are a cost-effective solution to address congestion in the U.S.  Only a historic investment in transportation infrastructure creating greater highway capacity will aide passenger mobility and help stimulate our economy through improved freight productivity.  Congestion relief is the most effective way to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Congress should support cost-effective technologies for vehicles and new fuels.

The prior bill passed in 2005 addressed eco-friendly measures such as including wildlife conservation in transportation planning, improving the transport of hazardous materials, funding for the Clean School Bus program, and funding to reduce air pollution from construction equipment.  We strongly encourage Congress to continue to build upon these measures and to look for additional environmentally friendly reforms to implement.

The EcoChamber strongly supports Congress enacting a federal highway bill this year.  America needs to build a 21st century transportation system that is safe, clean and smart and this legislation would provide the critical funding needed.

Open Space Issues

The United States Department of Agriculture through the forest service has created the Open Space Conservation Strategy defining open space as “land that is valued for natural processes and wildlife, agricultural and forest production, aesthetic beauty, active and passive recreation, and other public benefits. It is important to conserve open space — public land, private forests, tribal forests, ranches, farms, and other undeveloped lands - to provide a multitude of public benefits, ecosystem services, and products we all need and enjoy such as water, economic prosperity, wildlife, recreation, and wildfire protection.  Such lands include working and natural forests, rangelands and grasslands, farms, ranches, parks, stream and river corridors, and other natural lands within rural, suburban, and urban areas. Open space may be protected or unprotected, public or private.

The EcoChamber encourages the acquisition of open spaces through a series of business friendly initiatives such as:

• Tax incentives for those who donate land or interests in land and to those who sell land or interests in land, for conservation purposes, particularly in priority areas;
• Tax incentives for landowners for land conservation and/or stewardship:
• Fund programs enabling states to eliminate ad valorem property taxation for forest owners making a long-term commitment (150-200 year) to keep forest lands intact;
• Eliminate capital gains tax for the sale of permanent conservation easements on private forestland;
• Evaluation the federal, state, and local tax codes and their effect on land ownership and management with a focus on incentives for “green growth” and conservation;
• Enable transferable tax credits for open space on separate parcels;
• Replace annual land taxes and timber harvesting taxes with a severance tax system from timber harvest;
• Tax breaks to landowners who place land in trust for open space or who participate in land exchanges;
• Decrease taxes on inherited forestland.

More States Consider “Green” Legislation

In January NAIOP reported on legislation addressing green building standards in New Jersey and Michigan. New Jersey’s Senate Economic Growth Committee will hold hearings on some of the green building bills pending legislation this week. To date, Arizona, California, Colorado,Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, and Virginia have joined the growing list of state
legislatures to take up this issue in 2007. Read more

Laws & Legal

A new list compiled by FindLaw shows that, among ‘Urban Living‘, ‘Employee Rights‘, and ‘Debt & Collection‘, ‘Green Law‘ will be one of the most important legal issues of 2009. Green Law saw a surge last year because of the rising cost of fuel and hot environmental topics on campaign trails, but they’re expected to continue increasing in importance this year due to the growth of green industries. President-Elect Obama’s plan for green collar job creation in fields like alternative energy, climate control, and (hopefully) automobiles will make green issues far more commonplace. And, because of that, legal issues are bound to arise from them more often. Any environmental lawyers out there care to share their two cents?