By Roy C. Hengerson
On Tuesday February 26, 2008 over 100 environmental and conservation minded people gathered in a basement hearing room of the State Capitol for the start of Green Lobby Day. The Missouri Sierra Club, Missouri Votes Conservation, and the Missouri Coalition for the Environment were the principal organizers of this annual event. Approximately 30 other organizations from around the state co-sponsored the Lobby Day.
It is critical to the success of good environmental legislation and the defeat of bad measures for citizens to contact their State Representative and State Senator. In person visits have the most impact on legislators. Participation in a lobby day is an excellent opportunity to meet your legislators and make an impact on the legislative process. Citizens do not need to be experts on any topic to have a valuable visit. Legislators want and need to hear from average citizens with concerns about the environment. Thus, participants engaged in Green Lobby Day knowing that their time was well spent.
After welcomes and a general orientation to the plans for the day, participants received a briefing on some of the critical environmental legislation before the 2008 Session. Then, both in groups and as individuals, people met with legislators. Key legislators were the focus of these visits; however everyone was encouraged to visit with their own Representative and Senator. Several legislators stopped by the Senate alcove where lunch was available and spoke with attendees. In the alcove, people debriefed organizers on the results of their legislative visits.
Attendees also had an opportunity to experience a hearing of the House Energy and Environment Committee. The Committee had a hearing on House Bill 1499, which would establish the Manufacturer Responsibility and Consumer Convenience Computer Equipment Collection and Recovery Act, sponsored by Representative Shannon Cooper (R-120). The Sierra Club is supporting this bill.
In 2008, there is a marked increase in interest among legislators in bills that would promote energy efficiency, renewable energy, and solutions to the challenge of global climate change. Green Lobby Day helped to focus legislative attention to these issues. Throughout the 2008 Session, you can help make progress by contacting your state legislators in person, by phone, fax, e-mail, and by U.S. mail. By signing up for the state legislative alerts, listserv, and responding to calls to action, you can play a vital role in protecting Missouri’s environment. For more information, contact Roy Hengerson at roy.hengerson@sierraclub.org, by phone at (573) 644-2828, or visit the legislation link on our website at: http://missouri.sierraclub.org/index.html
Some Bills of Note
The Sierra Club is supporting the following bills and urges you to take action to encourage your legislators to help enact them. A complete list of Sierra Club-supported bills can be found in the state legislative tracking report available on the Missouri Sierra Club’s website.
| SB1100 | sponsored by Senator Bray requires state and local government buildings over a certain size to meet green building standards. | ||
| SB1117 | sponsored by Senator Smith includes green building tax credits, subsidies for doing a home energy audit, sales tax holiday for purchasing Energy Star appliances, and other requirements and incentives for energy saving purchases and programs. | ||
| SB1262 | sponsored by Senator Bray would establish mandatory renewable energy standards for retail electric companies, and other renewable energy promoting measures. | ||
| HB1666 | sponsored by Rep. El-Amin would establish the Missouri Global Warming Solutions Act to reduce carbon dioxide emissions over time. | ||
| HB1932 | sponsored by Rep. Harris (23) would prohibit large confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs) from being located near parks and historic sites. | ||
| HB2045 | sponsored by Rep. Baker (25) authorizes counties to enact a land preservation sales tax. |