Need to Know

FEDERAL
- At the end of March, Second Nature, APPA - Leadership in Educational Facilities, The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, the Association of University Leaders for a Sustainable Future, the National Council for Science and the Environment, the Intentional Endowments Network, and the U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development, sent a joint letter to Congressional leaders urging them to not exacerbate the impacts of climate change through any of the COVID-19 related policies they enact.   

- On March 26, 2020, environmental groups and organizations from many different states, sent a joint letter to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) expressing their disagreement with the EPA's plan to waive some of the environmental compliance regulations, due to COVID-19.  Waiving the measures will allow high polluting industries to continue to do so without consequences.  
 
- In mid-March, the bi-partisan Congressional House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis postponed the release of their "climate action framework" due to COVID-19.  This Committee which was created through House Resolution 6 in January 2019, was due to submit their climate action recommendations to Congress by March 31, 2020. 

 - The New York Times - based on information from Columbia Law School, and Harvard Law School - created a list of 95 environmental policies that either already have been rolled back by the current Administration, or are in the process of being rolled back by the Administration.    

STATES
The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) has been tracking how COVID-19 has been affecting the legislative sessions of all fifty states.  The following information is from the NCSL website for the 15 states that we focus on in regard to policy updates.  

ARIZONA: adjourned until April 13, 2020.
CALIFORNIA: suspended until May 4, 2020.
COLORADO: adjourned until April 13, 2020.
FLORIDA: adjourned sine die March 13, 2020. 
ILLINOIS: House adjourned until further notice; Senate adjourned until April 28, 2020. 
MASSACHUSETTS: no postponement or suspension has been announced. 
MICHIGAN: adjourned until April 7, 2020. 
MINNESOTA: suspended legislative floor sessions and committee hearings until April 14.
NEVADA: not in session in 2020. 
NEW HAMPSHIRE: adjourned until May 4, 2020. 
NEW JERSEY: Assembly convened via teleconference March 25.  Assembly adjourned until May 4.  Senate adjourned until a date and time to be announced. 
NORTH CAROLINA: not currently session.  Next session begins April 28, 2020.   
OHIO: Next voting session on April 28, 2020. 
PENNSYLVANIA: House and Senate convened floor sessions using remote participation and voting week of March 23, 2020. 
VIRGINIA: adjourned sine die March 12, 2020.  

OTHER STATE POLICY UPDATES
COLORADO
According to research obtained by The Denver Post, COVID-19 social distancing measures, such as less people driving, have resulted in major declines in air pollution in Colorado.  However, researchers and other experts have noted that it is too early to know what long-term effects if any, could come from this.  Additionally, there is a focus on the potential increase in air pollution again once the social distancing measures end.  

NEW JERSEY
- On March 23, 2020, the New Jersey Department of Treasury issued a press release announcing that due to COVID-19, and the "fiscal uncertainty" that it presents, the Department of Treasury would be freezing about a billion spending dollars.  More information can be found in the full voluntary disclosure.  

- The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities, is currently looking into what the best procedures could be to help New Jersey reach their goal of being carbon neutral by 2050.  

VIRGINIA
During the 2020 Legislative Session, the Virginia General Assembly passed the Virginia Clean Economy Act which will require the large utility companies in Virginia to be providing 100% renewable energy by 2045.  Virginia is also set to join the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI).   Thank you to everyone who helped encourage the Virginia Legislature to pass the Virginia Clean Economy Act.     

Opportunities to Participate

FEDERAL
The Clean Car Standards which were put in place to hep reduce climate pollution, are presently being threatened by the current Administration who is looking to roll them back.  When the standards were adopted in 2012, they were done so with support from consumers, automakers, and labor.  Further, in January 2017, the Environmental Protection Agency released a "Final Determination" stating that the Clean Car Standards was working, and that it should continue.  If the standards are weakened, it could hinder any progress that has been made, and any progress that will be made.  We Are Still In (WASI)* has created a helpful toolkit to help you easily illustrate your support for the Clean Car Standards.    

ILLINOIS
Before COVID-19, it was anticipated that the Illinois legislature would pass the Clean Energy Jobs Act (CEJA) during the 2020 session.  If enacted, CEJA would put Illinois on a path to 100% renewable energy by 2050, provide clean energy jobs for minority and disadvantaged communities, cut costs for ratepayers through capacity market reform energy savings, and implement other clean energy actions.  However, due to COVID-19, the Illinois legislature was suspended through April 4, 2020, and they now must also abide by the Governor's stay-at-home order through April 30, 2020.  If the legislature is able to resume prior to when their legislative session ends (May 31, 2020), it will be important that they hear support for CEJA from their constituents, Illinois' largest employers, and others. 

As a result, Ceres is drafting a sign-on letter to share with policymakers that will focus on the energy elements that are the most important to the business and higher-education communities, to help ensure that they will be represented in the CEJA bill.  If you would like to provide input in advance, and/or would be interested in signing onto the letter being drafted, please let Amanda Belles and Mel Mackin know.       

*Second Nature participates in the We Are Still In (WASI) coalition: a group of cities, states, tribes, businesses, universities, healthcare organizations, and faith groups. 

Our monthly policy updates, information, and opportunities to participate, are developed with support from Ceres, which is an organizational partner of Second Nature.  Ceres has identified 15 states plus Washington, D.C. for our primary focus - Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. - because of the beneficial legislative climates and real opportunities for policy advancements in these states.  

Note: The states included in each monthly Policy Update will be based on what policy updates we are recommending for that month, and are due to change - but will always be focused on the above 15 states (plus Washington, D.C.) - from month to month.  

Header Photo by Sherry Xu on Unsplash