Buy Clean Bill: An Odd Committee Experience
Support Sierra Club California on Climate Ride—Red White and Blue Ridge
California Senators Continue Fight to Protect Bees
Buy Clean Bill: An Odd Committee Experience
By Kathryn Phillips
One of our top priority bills hit a snag in the Assembly on Wednesday.
The Buy Clean California Act, AB 262, jointly authored by Assemblymembers Rob Bonta and Susan Talamantes Eggman, was supposed to sail through its first committee.
We had smart authors.
We had a strong lineup of supporters, including a concrete manufacturer, a steel manufacturer, the California Federation of Labor, the Communications Workers of America, SEIU, United Steel Workers, Blue Green Alliance, and a great showing of environmental and environmental justice and faith-based groups.
And our vote count beforehand showed we had exactly the right number of votes to get out of the committee.
Unfortunately, one of our supporters on the committee was called out of the hearing for a meeting and didn’t return. The committee waited. And waited. And waited, until they couldn’t wait any longer.
Fortunately, we’ll have a second chance at a vote-only special hearing the week of April 17, and then we’re on to the Natural Resources Committee on April 24.
AB 262 will help make sure the State of California’s purchasing power on infrastructure (about $10 billion a year) is used in a way that encourages manufacturers to cut their climate pollution, and that recognizes those manufacturers who are investing in cutting their emissions.
The bill requires companies that bid on state construction contracts to provide climate pollution data from their selected manufacturers for certain construction materials.
It also requires the Department of General Services—the agency that sets the rules for contracts and procurement—to develop guidance for procurement agencies about how to incorporate that revealed emissions data into bid review and selection. Finally, the bill instructs state agencies to put that guidance into practice.
You can learn more details about the bill by reading the Frequently Asked Questions document. You can also visit the buycleancalifornia.org website to learn more about the Buy Clean concept.
Some cement companies and contractor associations are opposing the bill. But as Jeff Davis, Vice President and General Manager of Central Concrete told the committee, his company supports the bill because it will encourage innovation by companies like his that are committed to reducing their greenhouse gas impacts.
Committee Chair Eggman, and members Jose Medina and Sharon Quirk-Silva voted yes in the Committee on Wednesday. Assemblymember Jim Frazier voted no. And Assemblymember Autumn Burke was absent during the vote.
The committee’s two Republican members, Assemblymember Tom Lackey and Assemblymember Heath Flora did not vote on the bill.
If you would like to help make sure the bill passes when it comes up again the week of April 17, thank Assemblymembers Eggman, Medina, and Quirk-Silva for their votes and encourage Assemblymembers Frazier and Burke to support the bill. You can find their contact information here.
Support Sierra Club California on Climate Ride—Red White and Blue Ridge
By Meg Gunderson and Dylan Schurman
As Sierra Club members, we are both inspired by nature, and dedicated to preserving its beauty. And with new challenges to conservation coming from Washington, there is no better time to take action.
If you’re interested in immersing yourself in breathtaking beauty, meeting like-minded individuals, learning from climate and environmental experts, seeing a different part of the country, and doing your part to preserve California, then Climate Ride may be for you.
Climate Ride is your opportunity to enjoy a 3-day bike ride from the stunning Blue Ridge Mountains in rural Virginia to the US Capitol in Washington and raise funds for Sierra Club California at the same time.
Along the way, you’ll experience highlights such as Blue Ridge Parkway, Shenandoah National Park, Manassas National Battlefield Park, the Old Dominion Trail, and the National Mall. At the end, you’ll have an opportunity to meet with your California representatives and have your voice heard.
The Blue Ridge to DC Ride is the only Climate Ride event remaining in 2017 with space on it.
Learn more and register at http://www.climateride.org/events/blueridge for the September 24-26, 2017 Blue Ridge Climate Ride.
California Senators Continue Fight to Protect Bees
By Eddie Moreno
Pollinators and flowering plants have had a blossoming relationship that extends as far back as 120 million years ago. This symbiosis has resulted in some of the most beautiful flowers, sweetest nectars and most pleasant aromas.
Today, pollinators like the bee pollinate 85% of the world’s flowering plants and 35% of global crop production. In California, bees play a significant role in the pollination of the 20 million pounds of fruits and nuts we produce each year. Our state’s agricultural production accounts for more food than any other state in the nation, contributing $15 billion a year.
Unfortunately, bee populations have declined significantly over the last 25 years. This alarming rate of mortality is due to a number of factors, though a substantial and growing body of evidence points to neonicotinoid pesticides as a significant factor.
Once again, the California legislature is considering a bill that will give home gardeners and other consumers the power to protect bees by informing consumers of the presence of bee-harming pesticides in the plant products they purchase. The bill by Senator Ben Allen and Senator Scott Wiener is Senate Bill 602.
This bill, which is now awaiting a vote on the Senate Floor, would require that neonicotinoid products sold in retail stores, with a few exemptions, should include a clearly stated warning on the label about the hazards to bees and other pollinators. It would also prohibit the noncommercial use of these pesticides to prevent improper use and abuse.
Last year, a similar bill by Senator Allen and Senator Mark Leno, SB 1282, failed on the Senate floor after intense opposition from the pesticide and agriculture industries.
Important legislation often takes many years of work to get passed, and it is heartening that Senator Allen and Senator Wiener have joined forces to carry on the work to protect essential pollinators.
If you want to help make sure SB 602 clears the state senate, call your senator now and urge an “AYE” vote on the senate floor. You can find who your senator is at http://findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov/.
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