Monthly Policy Update |

April 2022  

Policy Updates

NEED TO KNOW
Pathway to Paris: Post-IRA Policy Action to Drive US Decarbonization 
Publication Date: March 30, 2023 | Source: Rhodium Group 

• Why This Matters: Ambitious federal and subnational policies can push emissions down to 41-51% below 2005 by 2030. A Rhodium Group analysis overviews the different policies needed in order for the US to substantially reduce its emissions. These include the EPA finalizing an impactful standard for methane emissions, and more aggressive EPA light-duty vehicle (LDV) regulations to further accelerate the electrification of the transportation sector. This analysis revisits a previous, pre-IRA analysis, and issues renewed recommendations for policymakers and advocates to adhere to. 

GLOBAL
Nearly 200 Countries Approve a Biodiversity Accord Enshrining Human Rights and the 'Rights of Nature'
Publication Date: January 2, 2023 | Source: Inside Climate News  

• Why This Matters: The non-binding agreement reveals a growing understanding that future conservation efforts must promote the well-being of Indigenous people. The agreement is the result of COP15, a conference convened in Montreal in December under the UN Convention of Biological Diversity. It's a critical step in codifying the importance of biodiversity, and incorporating critical academic research on the matter into policymaking. 

FEDERAL
What is Willow? How an Alaska oil project could affect the environment
Publication Date: March 24, 2023 | Source: The Washington Post

• Why This Matters: In a wildly controversial move, last month, the Biden administration approved one of the largest oil developments on federal land, a decision that came after months of intense lobbying and over objections that the project, known as Willow, would undermine U.S. efforts to phase out fossil fuels worldwide. The Alaskan oil reserve, controlled by oil company ConocoPhillips, is on federal land, and Biden had previously promised to end new oil drilling on federal land. The #StopWillow campaign, led by university students, has gone viral in the wake of this decision. 

The next farm bill could be a historic climate law - if Congress can agree on it
Publication Date: March 28, 2023 | Source: Grist

• Why This Matters: Environmental organizations are pushing for the farm bill - which is renegotiated every five years - to include funding for climate technologies and sustainable agriculture, conservation programs, and tree-planting. However, many political pundits have predicted the Farm Bill will get tabled this year, so whether advocates are able to capitalize on this enormous funding opportunity remains to be seen. 

A New White House Plan Prioritizes Using the Ocean's Power to Fight Climate Change
Publication Date: March 21, 2023 | Source: Inside Climate News 

• Why This Matters: The Biden Administration's Ocean Climate Action Plan released last month recognizes that the planet can’t have a carbon-neutral future without healthy oceans. The plan sets three overall goals: creating a carbon-neutral future; accelerating nature-based solutions that protect and support coastal and ocean ecosystems that capture and store greenhouse gases; and enhancing community resilience to ocean changes. Higher education research on healthy oceans has the potential to 

STATES
CALIFORNIA
California climate bill would make companies disclose emissions
Publication Date: January 30, 2023 | Source: AP News 

• Why This Matters: California lawmakers introduced a package of climate bills Monday aimed at holding corporations accountable for their greenhouse gas emissions. The bills include legislation to 1) require companies to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions to the public, 2) ban the state’s public pension funds from investing in major fossil fuel companies, and 3) create a group to analyze climate-caused financial risks for corporations. The bills' prospects this session remain to be seen. 

MINNESOTA
Minnesota agency retools to 'meet the moment' on climate, clean energy
Publication Date: March 20, 2023 | Source: Energy News Network

• Why This Matters: The Minnesota Department of Commerce is working to help the state capture federal funding from the Inflation Reduction Act, and have hired several new staff to address this need. The Department is also going to help the state implement its new 100% clean energy law, one of the most ambitious clean energy standards in the nation. 

NEW HAMPSHIRE
A New Hampshire in-home energy storage program saved money and helped the grid
Publication Date: March 16, 2023 | Source: Energy News Network

• Why This Matters: A battery pilot program by Liberty Utilities put energy storage in about 100 customers' homes, and resulted in significant cost-savings. This program could be a model for future deployment of battery storage technology. 

NEW YORK
Environmentalists alarmed by push to 'undermine' New York's climate law 
Publication Date: April 2, 2023 | Source: Politico

• Why This Matters: Some NY policymakers are pushing for a change in NY's greenhouse gas accounting process that will benefit the natural gas industry. As it currently stands, New York is one of only two states that use a 20-year time horizon account for the damaging effects of GHG emissions instead of 100 years, and the fossil fuel industry has lobbied to change this to 100 years. 

NORTH CAROLINA 
North Carolina clean transportation plan 'misses the mark,' advocates say
Publication Date: March 31, 2023 | Source: Energy News Network

• Why This Matters: More than a year after Governor Roy Cooper issued an executive order requiring a clean transportation plan to be issued, the plan has been released. However, it lacks tangible action items and urgency, climate advocates say, stressing that this vagueness is a missed opportunity. 

NORTH DAKOTA 
Why North Dakota is preparing to sue Minnesota over clean energy
Publication Date: March 2, 2023 | Source: Grist 

• Why This Matters: Minnesota lawmakers passed a law in February requiring the state’s power utilities to supply customers with 100 percent clean electricity by 2040. In turn, the North Dakota Industrial Commission, the three-member body that oversees North Dakota’s utilities, agreed unanimously to consider a lawsuit challenging the new legislation.

OHIO
Ohio higher-ed bill would require instructors to teach 'both sides' on climate change
Publication Date: March 23, 2023 | Source: Energy News Network

• Why This Matters: Climate science is listed among a wide range of controversial topics included in the Higher Education Enhancement Act (SB 83), which seeks to limit classroom speech on abortion and immigration, among other issues. If this bill passes, it will alter the state's ability to educate students about the causes and impacts of climate change. 

Opportunities to Participate 

FEDERAL 
Environmental, Social and Governance Factors 
In the wake of attacks on the concepts of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) screening and sustainable investing, NYU Stern School has put together a sign-on letter for academic leaders to affirm their commitment to assessing ESG factors as part of fiduciary duty. More than $18 trillion is held in investment funds that follow the investing principle known as ESG, and Republicans have introduced legislation at the federal and state levels targeting these types of investments. 

ESG is a framework used to assess the current or potential impact of issues that effect a company’s bottom line to ensure that the company and its shareholders are adequately protected against risk and/or taking advantage of related new business opportunities. Corporate leaders and investors have measured and managed these factors for decades. Investors want early signals of whether a company is a good manager of material ESG issues to be good fiduciaries. Opposing disclosure makes it more likely markets will fail, because real costs and risks are not priced in. 

This sign-on letter is an opportunity for academic faculty and researchers to express their concern about recent attacks on ESG. 

The states and updates included in each Monthly Policy Update are based on what we are recommending for reading for that month, due to what we view as being directly relevant to higher education.  From month to month, the states focused on are due to change.  

Do you have feedback on our Monthly Policy Updates (what you like, what you would like to see improved, etc)?  Please email us: policyteam@secondnature.org.  

Note: 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 the following states plus Washington, D.C. for primary focus - Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, 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.  Our Policy Updates may, or may not, include these states (and Washington, D.C.).