Montpelier, VT – Late yesterday, S.259, a bill passed in the Vermont legislature that would allow the state to recover billions from fossil fuel companies to cover costs related to the impacts of climate change, became law. The measure, supported by the Sierra Club’s Vermont chapter and local environmental leaders, is the first-ever so-called “climate superfund” bill in the nation to become law.
Albany, NY - On Friday, April 8, 2022 Governor Hochul and the State Legislature came to an agreement on a $220 billion state budget that included historic funding for critical environmental programs, but missed opportunities to enact important climate policies required to advance the goals of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA). The final SFY 2022 budget includes landmark investments in wetlands protection, clean energy, water infrastructure, and climate resilience. Notable environmental agreements between the Governor and the Legislature include:
Minneapolis, MN -- Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune and Minnesota Sierra Club North Star Chapter Chair Kamau Wilkins issued the following statement on the murder of Daunte Wright in Brooklyn Center, MN. This officer-involved killing of a Black man occurred in the same metropolitan area as the site of George Floyd’s death in 2020, all while the trial of former officer Derek Chauvin is nationally televised. In July of 2019, the Sierra Club joined a coalition of environmental justice to release a just and equitable national climate platform that centers racial, climate and environmental justice to improve the public health and well-being of all communities.
WASHINGTON, D.C. - President Biden formally submitted his first budget request to Congress. The request takes as its starting point the urgent imperative to address four interlocking crises facing the nation: “a historic global pandemic; an economy battered by recession; the generational crisis of climate change; and persistent inequities in the economy and Nation.”
Washington, D.C. -- On Monday, 10 people were tragically killed in a mass shooting while at a grocery store in Boulder, Colorado. According to authorities, the suspect was apprehended at the site of the crime and has been charged with 10 counts of murder in the first degree. Cases of gun violence are on the rise as the country begins to reopen in accordance with public health and safety policies.