Philadelphia mayor testifies for climate legislation
Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter testified before Congress last week in support of new climate protection legislation endorsed by the Washington-based U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM). Nutter told a Congressional committee that the Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act (CEJAPA), which would extend funding for the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) program, would help cities create green jobs through local climate protection initiatives.
Representing USCM, Nutter testified on Oct. 28 before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on the importance of passing CEJAPA. “Since 2005, [USCM] has been urging Congress to pass a comprehensive climate protection plan, one that reduces our nation’s greenhouse gas emissions through an emissions trading system, adapts to anticipated climate threats, transitions to greater use of renewable energy and cleaner energy supplies, increases commitments to energy conservation and efficiency, and enhances our economic security through the accelerated development of homegrown energy supplies and technologies,” Nutter said in his written testimony. “The bill before you today will achieve these outcomes.”
Sens. John Kerry, D-Mass., and Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., sponsored CEJAPA, which was introduced on Sept. 30 and is still under consideration by the committee. It includes a wide range of funding for climate control initiatives in the public and private sector, including the extension of EECBG funding, which had received some money from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
Read the complete text of CEJAPA as a PDF. Also, you can read Nutter’s testimony as a PDF on the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ Web site.
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