HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda Item 6.1 SB343September 15, 2020
SB 343
Senate Bill 343 mandates supplemental materials
that have been received by the City Clerk’s office that
relate to an agenda item after the agenda packets
have been distributed to the City Council be available
to the public.
The attached documents were received in the City
Clerk’s office after distribution of the September 15,
2020, Regular City Council meeting agenda packet.
Item 6.1
From:
To:
Cc:
Subject:
Date:
Attachments:
hepjazz
Marsha Moore
Wietske Medema; Arun Goel; Kunal Khaware
COUNCIL AGENDA Item 6.1 Request
Monday, September 14, 2020 9:59:19 AM
Agenda Item 6.1 - Dublin Green Economic Recovery Act.pdf
Dublin Green Economic Recovery Act.pdf
Alameda County Green Recovery Act(2).pdf
Bay Area Green New Deal(1)-1.pdf
Good morning,
We are requesting the following letter and attached documents be added under
SB343 for the Agenda item #6.1.
These are the documents first introduced by Vice-Mayor Arun Goel during the
previous council meeting.
Please find the attached documents and the letter for distribution to the council
members (letter also included as a pdf file).
If there are any further requirements needed, or if you have any questions, don't
hesitate to contact me.
Hope you are staying safe and healthy during this unusual historical moment.
Kindest regards,
Mark Van Landuyt
Bay Area Green New Deal Coalition
925-858-5910
City of Dublin City Council
September 14th, 2020
We are in a Climate Emergency.
We are in an Economic Emergency.
The urgency of this moment has become undeniable.
With bold smart policies that create job growth and sustainability, Dublin can emerge
stronger out of the pandemic.
Preparing Dublin and its workforce for the post-pandemic economy, prioritizing a
Green economy will be essential to maintaining Dublin’s leadership of innovation and
prosperity.
Dublin’s Green Economic Recovery Act is complimentary to the city’s Climate Action
Plan. There is overlap and synchronicity in certain policy areas, but the Green
Economic Recovery Act is most centered on pioneering the economy of the future
and creating Green jobs.
To be effective, a city’s environmental policy works interconnected with its county and
state environmental policy. For that reason, we are including The Bay Area Green
New Deal and the Alameda County Green Economic Recovery Act, which supports
the Dublin Green Economic Recovery Act, which assists the delivery of Dublin’s
Climate Action Plan.
In tandem, all proposals provide the framework for implementing, delivering, and
exceeding the 2030 CAP.
We would like to enter The Bay Area Green New Deal, the Alameda County Green
Economic Recovery Act, and the Dublin Green Economic Recovery Act into public
comment under SB343.
We urgently request the council take on Dublin’s Green Economic Recovery Act and
use it as a pathway to the future. This crucial conversation must continue.
Thank you for your leadership,
California Green New Deal Coalition
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you
recognize the sender and know the content is safe.
City of Dublin City Council
September 14th, 2020
We are in a Climate Emergency.
We are in an Economic Emergency.
The urgency of this moment has become undeniable.
With bold smart policies that create job growth and
sustainability, Dublin can emerge stronger out of the pandemic.
Preparing Dublin and its workforce for the post-pandemic
economy, prioritizing a Green economy will be essential to
maintaining Dublin’s leadership of innovation and prosperity.
Dublin’s Green Economic Recovery Act is complimentary to the
city’s Climate Action Plan. There is overlap and synchronicity in
certain policy areas, but the Green Economic Recovery Act is
most centered on pioneering the economy of the future and
creating Green jobs.
To be effective, a city’s environmental policy works
interconnected with its county and state environmental policy.
For that reason, we are including The Bay Area Green New Deal
and the Alameda County Green Economic Recovery Act, which
supports the Dublin Green Economic Recovery Act, which assists
the delivery of Dublin’s Climate Action Plan.
In tandem, all proposals provide the framework for
implementing, delivering, and exceeding the 2030 CAP.
We would like to enter The Bay Area Green New Deal, the
Alameda County Green Economic Recovery Act, and the Dublin
Green Economic Recovery Act into public comment under
SB343.
We urgently request the council take on Dublin’s Green
Economic Recovery Act and use it as a pathway to the future.
This crucial conversation must continue.
Thank you for your leadership,
California Green New Deal Coalition
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The Alameda County Green Recovery Act
We are in an emergency. We are in an economic crisis. We are in a climate crisis.
Alameda County needs a bold Green jumpstart to our economy.
The pandemic has resulted in the loss of 2.4 million California jobs so far, the highest
unemployment record in state history. In May 2019, Alameda County had an
unemployment rate of 2.6 percent, which has now grown to 13.7 percent due to COVID-
19. This has economically affected local businesses and the most vulnerable
communities in Alameda county.
Alameda’s Green Recovery Act is the most viable strategy for long-term economic
recovery. Top economists have shown in a recent analysis how Green and sustainable
recovery policies offer powerful advantages in spurring growth during economic downturn
- boosting the creation of jobs, delivering higher short-run fiscal multipliers and leading to
higher long-run cost savings.
The Alameda County Green Recovery Act prioritizes the integration of environmental,
social, and economic justice policies that benefit low-income disadvantaged communities,
as well as the business sector. These policies will focus on reducing pollution exposure,
improving air quality, and promoting equitable access to public facilities, open green
spaces, safe and sanitary homes, as well as local organic food markets.
This plan correctly identifies the urgency of climate change and economic recovery, which
demands a reimagining of public works and market incentives. The Alameda County
Green Recovery Act will build a foundation for a healthier, more equitable clean energy
future for all of us.
The Alameda County Green Recovery Act consists of the following policy areas and
action items:
1. Clean Energy Generation, Storage and Distribution: Investing in low carbon
energy production and storage infrastructure. Extending and modernizing the grid to
enable higher renewable penetration as well as electrification of heat and transport.
● Forward an advocacy campaign for Community Choice Aggregation (CCA)
programs to become the dominant energy provider model in Alameda County to
foster more locally controlled renewable energy services and provide affordable
access to clean energy.
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● Alameda county will provide incentives for the installation of energy storage
technology in homes, commercial buildings, institutional buildings, and industrial
facilities. Both to manage intermittent power grid energy loss and to provide on-
site supplies of emergency power should the grid be compromised by climate
events.
● Install new types of wind and solar farms on underutilized land without endangering
community valued open spaces. County leadership will collaborate closely with
municipal leadership to implement renewable energy opportunities in underutilized
spaces or land that is not viable for development or agriculture.
2. Building Climate-Smart Infrastructure: Investment in low and zero-carbon
infrastructure projects.
● Alameda County and municipal governments will provide incentives to accelerate
installation of renewable energy technologies, prioritizing community microgrids to
build flexibility and resilience into the energy infrastructure. Microgrid cooperatives
should be able to disconnect from the main power grid during or after climate
events to share locally generated energy within their neighborhoods (e.g.
hospitals, police stations, fire stations and K-12 schools).
● The county will build resilient, affordable, publicly owned broadband infrastructure.
Internet access and communications are crucial in the wake of climate
emergencies. Infrastructure grants and technical assistance will be provided for
communities to build democratically controlled, co-operative, or open access
broadband networks.
● Bicycle infrastructure improvements can help reduce transportation-related
greenhouse gas emissions by increasing the viability of bicycling as a travel mode
within the community. The County will amend the 2007 Alameda County Bicycle
Master Plan to prioritize bicycle infrastructure improvements that enhance
residents’ access to key community activity areas. These include major transit
stations, schools, employment centers, neighborhood commercial centers, and
downtown business districts.
3. Electric Vehicle Conversion: Promote the uptake of electric cars through financial
incentives, expand fast-charging stations, and improve bike lanes to encourage wider
uptake of e-bikes.
● Tax credits provided for the purchase of electric vehicles, and graduated tax on
the purchase of internal combustion vehicles. Vouchers should exceed the trade-
in value of the internal combustion vehicles. The goal is to eliminate the sale and
registration of all new internal combustion vehicles – cars, trucks, buses by 2035.
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● Tax credits provided for installing electric charging stations in and around
residential, commercial, and industrial building sites to power electric vehicles.
Real estate companies and landlords owning dwellings with multiple occupants
should be encouraged to install sufficient charging stations and should receive a
tax credit for doing so, while escalating a tax over time for not providing the service.
● Help school districts and transit agencies replace all school and transit buses with
electric buses. The EPA classifies diesel exhaust as a human carcinogen,
containing chemicals and air pollutants classified as hazardous under the Clean
Air Act. Children on buses are exposed to concentrations of these substances that
can be 5-15 times higher than background levels negatively impacting their health
and performance in school. School districts will save in fuel and maintenance costs
over the life cycle of the bus.
4. Reducing Industrial Emissions: Introduce financial incentives (e.g. wider carbon
price floor) for industrial companies to reduce net carbon emissions and increase
efficiency in production.
● Alameda will aim at reducing industrial emissions 38% by 2035; and 82% by 2050.
Reduce methane leak emissions by 54% by 2035; and 80% by 2050.
● Partner with companies to help create world-class operations utilizing zero
emissions and clean electric power generation. Implement the latest innovations
in Green technologies -- When you cut emissions, you cut costs.
5. Circular Economy -- Reduce, reuse, recycle and compost: The county will move
to zero waste by 2035 through the development of programs to prevent and divert
waste of paper, cardboard, food, construction and demotion, glass, and plastic.
Surplus produce will be diverted to food banks.
• Regional manufacturing of recycled content products. Support the development of
new regional manufacturing companies that will make products from paper,
cardboard, and plastic waste generated in the county and region.
• Building deconstruction. Create municipal ordinances that require buildings to be
deconstructed instead of demolished and provide grants for one year to cover the
labor cost differential between the two.
• Demand for recycled content products. Develop Environmentally Preferable
Purchasing programs at city, county, and state government agencies that buy
products manufactured in the region from the region’s waste materials and plastic
films made from agricultural waste.
6. Affordable Sustainable Housing: Efficiency spending for renovations and retrofits
including improved insulation, heating, and domestic energy storage systems. Higher
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carbon standards for new homes. Financial support for households installing
insulation and other energy efficient improvements.
● Prioritize efficient land use to house every resident ethically and affordably through
new housing production, existing housing preservation, and tenant protection: (1)
producing new market-rate and affordable homes; (2) preserving existing housing
that is currently affordable; and (3) protecting tenants from unaffordable rent
increases and unfair evictions. The county will lead and support campaigns to
address these three targets.
● Weatherize homes and businesses to perform energy efficiency upgrades and
lower energy bills. Alameda County will provide sliding-scale grants for low- and
moderate-income families and small businesses to invest in weatherizing and
retrofitting homes and businesses.
● Repair and modernize public housing including making all public housing
accessible, conducting deep energy retrofits of all public housing, and providing
high-speed broadband access. Public housing will have quality, shared community
spaces to ensure every public complex has the capacity to serve as a community
resiliency center.
7. Nature-Based Solution Investments: Investment in ecosystem resilience and
regeneration by enhancing green spaces, planting trees, encouraging climate-
friendly agriculture and restoring carbon-rich habitats.
● Promote sustainable land uses and development patterns. Pursue infill
development opportunities and encourage the construction of higher-density,
mixed-use projects around existing public transit infrastructure, schools, parks,
neighborhood-serving retail and other critical services. Incorporate ecologically
sustainable practices and materials into new development, building retrofits and
streetscape improvements. In areas that are already built-up include affordable
housing as a means to reduce vehicle miles traveled and greenhouse gas
emissions. Facilitate walking, bicycling, and public transit use, including through
mixed-use corridors and activity centers.
● Require all new construction to protect and restore natural features such as
waterways, creeks & wetlands in urban areas as a means of connecting residents
with nature and reversing damage to natural systems. Where feasible, restore
creek corridors in urban areas. Creeks currently diverted in culverts or hardened
channels should be restored to their natural state.
● Promote a Community Restoration Network for the county to provide practical
knowledge, scientific understanding, and proven expertise to communities, while
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meeting restoration goals through volunteer-driven, community and science-based
ecological restoration projects.
8. Education and Training: Funding skills and retraining initiatives, such as investment
in education and digital training to address immediate unemployment from COVID-
19 and structural decarbonization shifts.
● Create proactive education campaigns for residents and businesses about the
importance of meeting or exceeding state requirements for reductions in
greenhouse gas emissions.
● Alameda County will leverage existing partnerships to make Green industries a
central priority, partnering with local job training programs and collaborating with
regional colleges to train and build a Green workforce.
● Focus job training and local hiring to reflect the racial and gender diversity of the
community receiving investments. Procurement will prioritize minority and women-
owned businesses, cooperatives and employee-owned firms, and community-
owned and municipal enterprises.
9. Research and Development: Invest in high impact sustainability technology
research and development that includes start-ups, small and medium-sized
enterprises, and large companies.
● The county will give particular attention to funding research, development, and
deployment to accelerate the transition from fossil fuel-based markets to
renewable energy processes and products.
● In order to ensure an affordable and complete transition away from fossil fuels in
the transportation sector, the county will invest in research and development to
decrease the cost of electric vehicles.
● Plastic film made from agricultural waste - Support research, development and
commercialization of plastic film from biodegradable agricultural waste to replace
plastic film made from fossil fuels.
● Coordinate the UC universities and community colleges to collaborate on creating
the latest Green technology innovations.
With focused investments on the county level, Alameda County will pioneer the economy
of the future. Alameda County Green Recovery Act will lead our region out of both the
climate crisis and the economic crisis.
Preparing Alameda for the Green Revolution will maintain our leadership of innovation
and prosperity.
“Act like your house is on fire….because it is.” - Greta Thunberg
The Bay Area Green New Deal…
The Bay Area Green New Deal calls for the swift and complete conversion to a 100
percent renewable energy system for both electricity and transport by 2030,partnered
with the full de-carbonization of the economy by 2040.
With focused investments on the city and county level,the Bay Area will pioneer the
economy of the future.The Bay Area Green New Deal will lead our region out of the
economic crisis as well as the climate crisis.
The Bay Area Green New Deal is our local civic commitment to a Green economic
recovery as we emerge stronger after the Covid-19 Pandemic.Preparing the Bay Area
workforce for the Green era is essential to maintaining the Bay Area’s leadership in
innovation and prosperity.
We call upon local elected leaders to correctly recognize the urgency of climate change,
which demands a re-imagining of public works and market incentives.The Bay Area
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Green New Deal aims to help build a foundation for a healthier,more equitable
clean-energy future for all of us.
The Bay Area will be climate neutral by 2045.To achieve this,we need to surpass the
state’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction targets.We must plan and prepare for the threats of
climate change within our own communities --the threats that are already here and the
threats science predicts we will be facing.Bold action must be taken to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions, sequester carbon, and transition to a carbon-free economy.
The Bay Area Green New Deal contains ten critical policy areas.This plan is designed
to evolve over time with community input and participation.It lies in the hands of Bay
Area communities to support the policies that come from this document,and to
strengthen it with our own creativity and expertise.
1. Clean energy and zero-carbon economy
The climate crisis demands energy democracy –the transition from a centralized
corporate fossil fuel economy to a clean energy system governed by local communities.
Transitioning to a 100%clean energy supply by 2030 is the backbone of the Bay Area’s
strategy to go carbon neutral.It is essential to build sufficient clean energy generation
capacity for the Bay Area’s growing needs by investing in solar and wind energy
opportunities.The Bay Area is ideal for solar and wind power,which offer opportunities
for local economies.
●Focus local governments’resources on transitioning to a 100 percent clean
energy economy.All applicable departments must prepare for the clean energy
economy by transitioning resources and offices historically used to facilitate fossil
fuel extraction,transportation,or refining.Instead,Bay Area agencies will lead a
centralized taskforce to phase out fossil fuels by expediting research,development,
deployment,and technical support for polluting industries to ensure a smooth
transition for workers and communities who have historically relied on fossil fuel
production.This taskforce will be responsible not only for phasing out fossil fuel
production on public lands and waters,but will support the end of fossil fuel
production on private property as well.
●The Bay Area needs Public Banking.The fight for a Bay Area Green New Deal is
also the fight for Public Banks.With Municipal and public banks operating for the
people instead of private shareholders,the flow of capital better reflects the values
of our local communities.This can be ensured by creating public banking charters
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based on a framework of responsibility,transparency and accountability.Through
locally controlled public banks,chartered with socially and environmentally
responsible mandates,we can build a public banking model to become a
nationwide network of Public Banks,responsive to the needs of local communities.
Public Banks would provide credit to fund public infrastructure projects and reinvest
in local communities,while simultaneously reducing expenses previously incurred
from extractive private banks.
●The region will support the move to a California Public State Banking Model.
Under the Bay Area Green New Deal we will support the State providing
emergency COVID-19 relief by transferring 10%of California’s Pooled Money
Investment Account (PMIA)into the existing California Infrastructure Bank (IBank).
It then requires the IBank to convert into a state depository institution which can
leverage funds and lend directly to cash-strapped local governments and small
businesses.A California State Public Bank can offer emergency lending and credit
to community banks and credit unions,rescue small businesses,and help
historically marginalized communities.
●Forward an advocacy campaign for Municipal Clean Energy (MCEs)non-profit
agencies into every region of the Bay Area to foster more renewable and locally
controlled energy services.Real estate companies and landlords owning dwellings
with multiple occupants should be encouraged to install solar panels and should
receive a tax credit for doing so,while escalating tax hikes over time for not
providing the service.
●County and municipal governments will provide tax credits and other
incentives to accelerate installation of solar and where viable,wind
technologies.The mix of solar and sustainable installations will prioritize
neighborhood and community microgrids to build flexibility and resilience into the
energy infrastructure.Microgrid cooperatives should be able to disconnect from the
main power grid during or after climate events or cyberattacks to share locally
generated solar and wind power within their neighborhoods.
●Install new types of wind and solar farms on underutilized land.Regional
leadership will collaborate closely with county and city leadership as well as the
agricultural community to implement solar and wind opportunities in underutilized
spaces.In addition to putting land to new use,these projects create a new source
of income for farmers and ranchers that will be spent locally.Land that is not viable
for development or agriculture should be home to solar development throughout the
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Bay Area.Utilize parking lots,city land,airport,and other unused spaces for solar
arrays.
●Bay Area counties must provide tax credits and other incentives for the
installation of energy storage technology in homes,commercial buildings,
institutional buildings,and industrial facilities to provide backup power.Both to
manage intermittent power grid energy loss and to provide on-site supplies of
emergency power should the grid be compromised by climate events or
cyberterrorist attack.
●Weatherize homes and businesses to perform energy efficiency upgrades to
make buildings more efficient and lower energy bills.Communities will provide
sliding-scale grants for low-and moderate-income families and small businesses to
invest in weatherizing and retrofitting homes and businesses.Deep weatherization
retrofits will reduce residential energy consumption by 30 percent.As the Bay Area
moves forward with energy efficiency efforts,the oldest,leakiest and least energy
efficient homes,and the homes of seniors,people with disabilities,and low-income
families will be prioritized.
●Ban regional fracking.Fracking is a particularly harmful method to extract fossil
fuels.They make surrounding communities less healthy and less safe.Fracking
must be immediately banned.
●Require fossil fuel corporations to repair leaking infrastructure,including
natural gas,oil pipelines,and drilling sites.Methane from fracked natural gas is 86
times more powerful than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in our atmosphere.
Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)can be more than a thousand times more potent than
carbon dioxide.Methane leaked by the oil and gas industry each year is roughly
equivalent to the amount of carbon pollution emitted each year by the US coal
industry.
●Require implementation of a baseline greenhouse gas (GHG)emissions
inventory for both community wide and county operations,that is reviewed and
adjusted on an annual basis to ensure GHG reduction goals are met or exceeded.
The Inventory shall provide a GHG emissions forecast of 2020 and 2030,and
beyond if needed.The GHG emissions reduction target will align with Executive
Order B 55 80,committing to net zero carbon by 2045 and will include commitment
to SB100, 100% zero carbon energy by 2045.
●Regulate all dangerous greenhouse gases.Carbon dioxide is a very dangerous
greenhouse gas,but it is not the only one we must address.Methane is 86 times
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more powerful than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere,and
hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) can be more than a thousand times more powerful.
●Collaboration will be needed to create proactive education campaigns for
residents and businesses about the importance of meeting or exceeding state
requirements for reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.
●Declare a regional climate emergency.There is a climate emergency which
demands a massive-scale mobilization to halt,reverse,and address its
consequences and causes.This is an existential threat and the Bay Area must do
whatever it takes to confront it.
●Call for California to divest pensions from fossil fuels.State employees’
pensions are currently invested in fossil fuels,which put their pensions at risk.
California’s state government must protect and grow those pension funds by
instead investing in the clean energy economy.
●Pressure financial institutions,universities,insurance corporations,and large
institutional investors still invested or insure fossil fuels to transition those
investments to clean energy bonds.We have seen a movement of activists force
divestment from fossil fuel corporations,they must be supported by local
governments.
●To achieve these goals,Bay Area counties will promote new initiatives and
innovative strategies that meet and exceed state requirements.Municipalities will
participate with other jurisdictions and organizations to develop effective regional
solutions and regulation at local and state levels.
2. Green jobs creation and a just transition for workers
As of May 2020,there are 14 million people between the ages of 25 and 64 who are
officially unemployed.In addition,there are 39 million people who are not part of that
25-64 year old Labor Force.Now that the pandemic surge is upon us and
unemployment benefits will soon run out,it's a crucial time to create millions of new
Green jobs.
●Allocate the expenditure of city and county funds to programs,businesses,
organizations,agencies,and institutions that provide greatest opportunities
for green jobs with labor provisions,and climate-based solutions consistent with
the urgency of the climate crisis and the need to make rapid and sustained
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reduction in greenhouse gases consistent with targets from the Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change.
●Bay Area counties must direct actions in their general plans to transition from
toxic industries to clean industries that offer good-wage jobs accessible by
biking,walking and public transportation.The counties must promote a local hiring
incentive or requirement.
●The region will create 300,000 green jobs by 2035,and 400,000 green jobs by
2050.Increase private sector green investment in the region by $750 million by
2025, and $2 billion by 2035.
●Bay Area counties must leverage existing partnerships to make Green
industries a central priority,partnering with local job training programs and
collaborating with regional colleges to train and build a green workforce.
●New Green jobs require strong labor standards.That means all jobs created
under the Bay Area Green New Deal will have family-sustaining fair wages,local
hiring preferences,project labor and community agreements,including buying
clean,American construction materials and paying workers a living wage to the
greatest extent possible.We will improve worker and fenceline community safety
standards at manufacturing and industrial plants.
●Ensure a just transition for energy workers.Thousands of union,family-wage
jobs will be created through the Bay Area Green New Deal.Steel and auto
manufacturing,construction,energy efficiency retrofitting,coding and server farms,
renewable power plants will all be booming in the Green economy.Workers
transitioning into new job sectors should be guaranteed job placement assistance,
relocation assistance,and pensions based on their previous salary.Workers
requiring training for a different career path will receive vocational job training with
certain expenses provided.
●Protect the right of all workers to form a union without threats or intimidation
from management.We will work with the trade union movement to establish a
sectoral collective bargaining system that will work to set wages,benefits,and
hours across entire industries,not just employer-by-employer.Unions not only
ensure that workers receive fair pay and benefits,they fight to ensure that workers,
first-responders, and fence-line communities are safe and healthy.
●Invest in workers and de-industrialized communities'economic development.
Counties with more than 35 qualifying workers should be eligible for targeted
economic development funding to ensure job creation in the same communities that
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will feel the impact of the transition most.Other eligible projects include drinking
and waste water infrastructure,broadband,and electric grid infrastructure
investments.
●Bay Area communities will call upon the philanthropic community’s
participation --doubling the federal mandate in which private philanthropies give
away 10%annually of their endowments instead of 5%.Doing so for just three
years would pump an additional $200 billion into the economy.This will be used to
create green entrepreneur accelerators to support workers who want to start new
businesses and create green jobs.
3. Clean transportation
The Bay Area will grow by over two million people by 2038.As populations grow,rising
housing costs push lower income families to the suburbs,creating sprawl that puts
pressure on our open spaces and increases commuting by automobiles.Transportation
is the largest single source of air pollution in the Bay Area.Without transforming our
transportation system,the Bay Area cannot become climate neutral.Transforming this
system requires strategic implementation of accessible alternatives to driving cars.A
goal of the Bay Area Green New Deal is to transition to 100%electric vehicles by 2030
and to build public transit that is affordable,accessible,fast,resilient,and that fits
communities’ needs.
●Expand the green transportation network by encouraging the use of
climate-friendly technology,planning growth around multiple modes of travel and
reducing automobile reliance.In addition to promoting improved public transit,
partner with private developers to undertake region-wide improvements that make
active modes of travel,such as walking and bicycling,more comfortable and
preferable options.Establish an energy efficient fleet management and operation
practices.
●Enhance regional transportation systems to reduce the impacts of
single-occupancy vehicle travel.Our region must ensure transit-oriented
development,focus economic development near housing or transit,reduce vehicle
miles traveled and promote equitable access to jobs and services,especially for
disadvantaged communities.It is also essential to strengthen the urban limit line,
and preserve lands along the line.
●Increase public transit ridership by 65 percent by 2030.We will ensure that
reliable,affordable public transit is accessible for seniors,people with disabilities,
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and rural communities.In addition to expanding transit service to communities,we
will promote transit-oriented development to link this service to popular destinations
and vital community services.We will help discourage long car commutes,
congestion,and dangerous emissions.The Bay Area Green New Deal will reverse
these trends and create more livable, connected, and vibrant communities.
●Increase the percentage of all trips made in the region by walking,biking,and
micro-mobility or matched rides to at least 35%by 2025;50%by 2035;and
maintain at least 50%by 2050.Reduce Vehicle Miles Travelled (VMT)per capita by
at least 13% by 2025, 39% by 2035, and 45% by 2050.
●Vehicle trade-in program.Families with conventional cars will be able to access
an additional incentive for trading-in for an electric vehicle.We will expand on the
program and make it stronger by requiring even higher efficiency and make it
available predominately to cars manufactured in the U.S.
●Tax credits provided for the purchase of electric vehicles,and graduated tax
hikes should be imposed on the purchase of internal combustion vehicles.
Vouchers should exceed the trade-in value of the internal combustion vehicles.The
goal is to eliminate the sale and registration of all new internal combustion vehicles
– cars, trucks, buses by 2035.
●Electric vehicle charging infrastructure.In order to ensure that no one is ever
stranded without the ability to charge their vehicle,the Bay Area will ensure that
new EV stations are open access and interoperable between all payment systems.
Under our plan,drivers will no longer need to worry about where to charge their car
or if they can pay for it.
●Tax credits provided for installing electric charging stations in and around
residential,commercial,and industrial building sites to power electric vehicles.Real
estate companies and landlords owning dwellings with multiple occupants should
be encouraged to install sufficient charging stations and should receive a tax credit
for doing so, while escalating tax hikes over time for not providing the service.
●Counties must help school districts and transit agencies replace all school
and transit buses with electric buses.The EPA classifies diesel exhaust as a
human carcinogen,and this exhaust contains over 40 different chemicals and air
pollutants that are classified as hazardous air pollutants under the Clean Air Act.
Children on buses are exposed to concentrations of these substances that can be
5-15 times higher than background levels negatively impacting their health and
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performance in school.Once older buses are replaced with clean electric buses,
school districts will save in fuel and maintenance costs over the life cycle of the bus.
●Encourage telecommuting options through public outreach with new or
existing employers,as appropriate and modeled by County policies that encourage
telecommuting whenever feasible.Work with existing shuttle service providers to
coordinate services with other forms of transit,special events and work centers.
Encourage home offices,live work sites and satellite work centers in appropriate
locations.
●Coordinate ride-sharing programs to provide up-to-date lists of potential riders
and to educate the public on commuting options.Encourage the development of
employer-funded vanpool and shuttle bus services to new employment centers.
Encourage employer provision of information on alternative modes of transit.
Encourage employers to offer flex-time arrangements to their employees in order to
reduce travel during peak hours.
●Promote the development of a regional high-speed rail.Many other developed
nations have advanced high speed rail systems to give travelers a meaningful
affordable alternative to car travel between cities and counties.High-speed rail has
not been embraced in the United States because we have not built the political
mobilization needed to demand the funding needed to complete this clean
transportation vision.Together,we will create the movement needed to push for the
development of a high-speed rail system, regionally and beyond.
4. Clean Air, Water and Waste
Water is life. Clean water is a human right.
Water pollution in the Bay Area comes in the form of dredge spoil,solid waste,
incinerator residue,sewage,garbage,sewage sludge,munitions,chemical wastes,
biological materials,heat,wrecked or discarded equipment,rock,sand,cellar dirt,and
industrial,municipal,and agricultural waste discharged into water.Water quality
standards are not met in over half of California's 3 million acres of lakes,bays,wetlands
and estuaries.Under the Bay Area Green New Deal,we aim to replace lead pipes,
clean up hazardous waste sites,and reduce toxic air and water pollution from oil,gas,
and coal.Those benefiting the most will be communities of color and low-income
families in the region who today endure disproportionate exposure to toxins.
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Clean air is a human right.A combination of three factors are the cause of unhealthy
levels of air pollution in our region:the activities of over 8 million people,mountainous
terrain that traps pollution,and a climate that helps form ozone and other pollutants.We
must be tenacious about improving the quality of air our communities breathe.
●The Bay Area must upgrade all water systems,sewage systems,and storm
water drains by 2030 to be resilient to climate-induced storms and floods that
threaten public health.In preparation for drought and other climate events,water
storage systems (e.g.cisterns)must be established across the region to provide
emergency backup access to water.
●County Clean Water Revolving Fund programs must be developed,along with
a new grant program to help households install,repair,replace,and upgrade septic
and drainage fields.Where necessary,counties and school districts will refurbish
public schools water systems during Covid19 quarantine and summer recess.
●Where applicable,cities should ensure public oversight and local control by
re-municipalization of all water-related systems that have been privatized over
the years.
●Better groundwater management for urban,rural,and agricultural areas is
needed in the region.More than 40 percent of Californians rely on groundwater for
part of their water supply,creating dangerous water overdrafts.We must encourage
the transition from groundwater wells to surface water use and extend mandatory
groundwater monitoring and reporting plans.
●Reuse water,adapt to water scarcity:Recycle 100%of waste water for beneficial
reuse by 2035.Source 70%of all water locally by 2035.Source 70%of the Bay
Area's water locally and capture 250,000 acre ft/yr (AFY)of stormwater by 2035.
Build at least 10 new multi-benefit stormwater capture projects by 2025;100 by
2035;and 200 by 2050.Reduce potable water use per capita by 22.5%by 2025;
25%by 2035;and maintain or reduce 2035 per capita water use through 2050.
Install or refurbish hydration stations at 200 sites,prioritizing municipally-owned
buildings and public properties such as parks, by 2035.
●Require new development and significant remodels to reduce the waste of
potable water through the use of efficient technology,recycled water plumbing
(purple pipe),and conservation efforts that minimize the region’s dependence on
imported water and conserve groundwater resources.
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●The region must eliminate legacy pollution from toxic waste sites,remediating
lead in paint and pipelines,ensuring safe wastewater and water systems in low
income communities and communities of color.
●Cleaning up existing hazardous waste and abandoned sites.Develop funding
for point source (i.e.any single identifiable source of pollution from which pollutants
are discharged,such as a pipe,ditch,ship or factory smokestack)and nonpoint
source management programs (i.e.nonpoint source pollution includes excess
fertilizers,herbicides and insecticides from agricultural lands and residential areas;
Oil,grease and toxic chemicals from urban runoff and energy production,sediment
from improperly managed construction sites).
●Reduce waste:Increase landfill diversion rate to 90%by 2027;95%by 2035;and
100%by 2050.Reduce municipal solid waste generation per capita by at least 15%
by 2030,including phasing out single-use plastics by 2028.Eliminate organic waste
going to landfill by 2028.Increase proportion of waste products and recyclables
productively reused and/or repurposed in the Bay Area to at least 25%by 2025;
and 50%by 2035.Find feasible alternatives to plastic packaging and single-use
food containers.
●Clean air is a human right:The Bay Area will have zero days of unhealthy air
quality by 2028.Reduce industrial emissions by 38%by 2035;and 82%by 2050.
Reduce methane leak emissions by 54% by 2035; and 80% by 2050.
●Enforce the Clear Air and Water Acts on large factory farms and ensure all
farmers have access to the tools and resources they need to address pollution.
Industrial animal feeding operations,and the millions of pounds of untreated waste
they create,are a major source of air pollution and driver of climate change.The
region will end the weak oversight of factory farms.
5. Sustainable agriculture
Sustainable agriculture is farming in sustainable ways,which means meeting society's
present needs,without compromising the ability for current or future generations to
meet their needs.It is based on an understanding of ecosystem services.The Bay Area
Green New Deal strives to support a safe and sustainable local food supply,and to
connect consumers with local farms and healthy foods.We aim to invest in family farms
and rural communities --not corporate ownership.We also aim to expand and
incentivize community gardens and community supported agriculture.
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●Bay Area communities will move towards 100%organic certification by 2035.
The region will deploy plans to phase out petro-chemical agriculture and introduce
organic and renewable ecological practices,while boosting regional agricultural
production for local markets over a 15-year period.Counties should provide
subsidies and incentives to encourage a speedy transformation.
●Transition to organic farming.Create a grant program to help farmers transition
their land to new organic farmers.As Conservation Reserve Program (CRP)
contracts end,we will help connect these farmers with new organic farmers who
want to continue rigorous conservation practices on a working landscape.
●Preserve and expand farmers’markets,and explore opportunities to expand
access to fresh,healthy,local foods within our region.Ensure the long-term
stability of our existing farmers markets to allow communities in the region to depend
on fresh,local foods and places to purchase them.Support job creation by
expanding opportunities for small farmers and ranchers to reach local markets more
often and in broader geographical areas.
●Increase efforts to process agricultural products locally,addressing gaps in
the agricultural supply chain.When products are shipped away to be stored and
processed,our economy loses out on revenue,additional greenhouse gasses are
emitted and our local communities are less likely to benefit from keeping good,
wholesome foods local.
●Preserve the region’s limited agricultural lands for local food production,
ensuring the long-term viability of these lands for local and sustainable food
production.Develop collaborative marketing with local organizations to create
funding streams for projects to support local food production.Also encourage
community gardens in empty lots and new developments in order to maximize both
local food production and community engagement.
●Incentivize community ownership of farmland.One of the barriers to being able
to choose a career in ecologically regenerative farming is the cost of acquiring
farmland.We want communities to be able to join together to own farmland to help
people grow our local,ecologically regeneratively produced food and help solve the
climate crisis.
●Incentivize farmers to develop ecologically regenerative farming systems that
sharply reduce emissions;sequester carbon;and heal our region’s soils,forests,
and prairie lands.Pay farmers to keep carbon in the soil.Counties will provide
incentives and subsidies to farmers for soil health improvements they make and for
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the carbon they sequester,which both mitigates climate change and helps farmers
adapt to it.
●Adopt farmland mitigation programs aimed at preserving farmland while giving
agricultural landowners the opportunity to recover equity in their property without
developing it.These should be coordinated among localities so as to create a level
playing field and prevent developers from playing one jurisdiction against its
neighbors.Local Agency Formation Commissions (LAFCOs)can help do this by
adopting their own policy of requiring cities to mitigate farmland loss as a condition
of annexation.
●End exclusions for agricultural workers in labor laws.We must ensure
farmworkers have the right to overtime pay,strong safety protections,and the right
to collectively bargain.Currently,farm workers are exempt from many labor laws
that other workers have benefitted from for years.Farming is a dangerous and
demanding profession. We need to protect these workers as we do others.
●Establish a victory lawns and gardens initiative to help urban,rural,and
suburban communities transform their lawns into food-producing or reforested
spaces that sequester carbon and save water.
●Incentivize schools to procure locally produced foods.Institutional purchasing
can be a huge boost to local producers and build local farm economies.Counties will
give a meal incentive for schools that acquire at least 30 percent of their food from
local sources.
6. Affordable sustainable housing
The Bay Area is facing an enormous housing crisis.Working and middle-income
families can no longer afford to own a home,renters face rising costs that force them to
move further from their jobs and communities,and growing numbers of unhoused
people live on our streets.This crisis has been building for decades and has spread to
moderate-income households.The largest impacts are felt by communities of color,
people with disabilities,formerly incarcerated people,low-wage immigrants,
transgender and gender-non-conforming people, and those with the lowest incomes.
The fight for housing justice is inextricably linked to the fight for racial,economic and
environmental justice.A focus of the Bay Area Green New Deal will be on expanding
affordable and sustainable housing opportunities for low-income frontline communities,
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and developing housing that people and the planet can afford.Under the Bay Area
Green New Deal, we will end homelessness by 2028.
●Housing is affordable if it costs no more than 30%of one’s income.People
who pay more than this are considered “cost burdened”.Those who pay more than
50%are “severely cost burdened.”Affordable housing generally means affordable
to lower-income people with incomes at or below 80%of area median income
(AMI).Affordable rental housing programs target lower-income people,while
affordable homeownership programs target people making up to 120% of AMI.
●Prioritize efficient land use and house every resident ethically and affordably
through new housing production,existing housing preservation,and tenant
protection:(1)producing new market-rate and affordable homes;(2)preserving
existing housing that’s currently affordable;and (3)protecting tenants from
unaffordable rent increases and unfair evictions.The region will lead and support
campaigns to address these three targets.
●All new development will uphold the principle that people must be able to live
where they work.Increase cumulative new housing unit construction to 150,000 by
2025,and 275,000 units by 2035.Ensure 57%of new housing units are built within
1,500 feet of transit by 2025,and 75%by 2035.Create or preserve 50,000
income-restricted affordable housing units by 2035 and increase stability for
renters.Creation of a sustainable carbon-neutral public housing index of 400,000
units. Cities and counties ratio determined by population size.
●Reduce environmental impacts of housing development by promoting infill,
mixed use development,and alternative housing.Infill housing involves the
insertion of additional housing units into already-approved subdivisions or
neighborhoods,provided as additional units built on the same lot or as new
residential lots by further subdivision or lot line adjustments.Mixed-use zoning or
planning blends residential,commercial,cultural,institutional,and entertainment
uses into one space,where those functions are integrated while providing
pedestrian connections.Alternative housing will involve,for example,townhomes,
apartments, tiny homes, abandoned buildings.
●Reduce energy consumption by promoting sustainable land uses and
development patterns.Pursue infill development opportunities and encourage the
construction of higher-density,mixed-use projects around existing public transit
infrastructure,schools,parks,neighborhood-serving retail and other critical
services.Incorporate ecologically sustainable practices and materials into new
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development,building retrofits and streetscape improvements.In areas that are
already built-up include affordable and deeply affordable housing,as a means to
reduce vehicle miles traveled and greenhouse gas emissions,and facilitate walking,
bicycling,and transit use,including through mixed-use corridors and activity
centers.
●Retrofitting public and commercial buildings.All public buildings must meet new
standards by 2025.All existing residential and commercial buildings reduce
greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030 and be zero
net energy before 2040.All new residential buildings must be at zero net energy by
2025 and new commercial buildings be zero net energy by 2030.Local municipal
governments will mandate and finance the transition of all public and commercial
property to green zero-emission assets and infrastructure by 2027,using
procurement to boost green businesses.
●Introducing generous tax credits and deductions,grants,and low interest
loans to encourage the retrofitting of the county’s residential,commercial,
industrial,and institutional building stock.The conversion from gas and oil heating
to electric heating by renewable energy from the grid will bolster resilience to
climate-related disruptions.Additional supplementary tax credits,deductions,
grants,and low interest loans should be extended to low and middle income rental
properties and homeowners to encourage retrofits.
7. Social justice for frontline communities
The Bay Area Green New Deal calls upon county and city officials to engage and
provide technical assistance to populations and communities most impacted by pollution
to promote meaningful involvement of these communities in environmental and land use
decision making.It is an unfortunate reality that institutional racism also impacts
environmental health,and thus the public health and safety of millions of low-income
families,people of color,and tribal communities.African American and Latinx
communities deal with 56 percent and 63 percent more air pollution,respectively,than
they create.We will abide by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of
Indigenous Peoples and ensure the free,prior and informed consent by Indigenous
Peoples.The Bay Area Green New Deal must serve to address modern and historical
inequities, environmental racism, and will follow Environmental Justice principles.
●Respect indigenous sovereignty.Commit to upholding regulations in a way that
strengthens tribal sovereignty and ensures tribal consent on projects involving land
in which tribes own even a fractional interest.Commit to early and ongoing
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consultation with tribes to identify and work to appropriately mitigate or address
concerns regarding infrastructure projects.
●Protect cultural and sacred sites.Work with local Native American tribes to
protect recorded and unrecorded cultural and sacred sites and to educate
developers and the community at large about the connections between Native
American history and the environmental features of our local landscape.
●Invest in organization partnerships with a green focus on low income
neighborhoods.The fewer resources people in our communities have,the more
vulnerable they are to the impacts of climate change.As the region transitions to
greener solutions and a greener economy,we must work to create opportunities for
low income communities to participate from the start.The Bay Area must step up to
support and bolster existing efforts that invest in low income communities and
create more economic stability for low income families.
●Prioritizing disadvantaged communities.The region will prioritize Green
business opportunities in the most disadvantaged communities and provide
appropriate training for new employment opportunities that come with scaling-up
green infrastructure.Generous tax credits,grants,low-interest loans,and other
incentives to upgrade all public health services should be prioritized to the poorest
communities facing public health risks brought on by climate change.Update
permitting rules that currently allow polluters to target poor communities for polluting
infrastructure.Cumulative environmental impacts will be measured and we will
require polluters to remediate them.Precaution for the health and safety of our
children and planet should be valued above profit.
●Enact equitable tax laws.To ensure a more fair and just society,more equitable
tax laws should be enacted in the Bay Area that reduce the vast disparity between
the super-rich and the rest of the population,with the revenues accrued being used
to advance the transition categories that make up the new Green economy.
●California state recovery resources will fund environmental equity in a manner
that prioritizes reversing the factors creating disproportionate health suffering in low
income communities,immigrant communities,and communities of color that have
historically faced underinvestment and discriminatory policies.
●Focus job training and local hiring to reflect the racial and gender diversity of
the community receiving investments.Procurement will prioritize minority and
women-owned businesses,cooperatives and employee-owned firms,and
community-owned and municipal enterprises.
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●Follow the Principles of Environmental Justice adopted at the First National
People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit.The goals and outcomes of the
Bay Area Green New Deal should continue to be developed under the Jemez
Principles for Democratic Organizing with strong and consistent consultation with
the communities most affected by the current unequal enforcement of
environmental laws.
8. Ecosystem restoration and conservation
Ecosystem restoration is the process of assisting in the recovery of ecosystems that
have been degraded,damaged,or destroyed and focused on establishing the
ecological processes necessary to make terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems
sustainable,resilient,and healthy under current and future conditions.Restoration will
help to control erosion,improve water quality,repair habitats,and provide other benefits
to people and the environment.Under the Bay Area Green New Deal,the region will
focus on restoring ecosystems through land preservation,afforestation,and (citizen)
science-based projects.
●Integrating Traditional Ecological Knowledge of Indigenous Tribes and native
communities into emerging ecosystem management models.A primary goal of
ecosystem restoration under the Bay Area Green New Deal will be to develop and
use tools of ecological restoration to enhance the survival of indigenous people and
their cultures,and to incorporate the Traditional Ecological Knowledge of
Indigenous tribes and native communities into newly emerging models of
sustainable (agro-) ecosystem management.
●Protect,restore and preserve our wetland,riparian,and aquatic systems.
Identify and create an inventory of riparian habitats,vernal pools,waterways,
shorelines,wetlands,sloughs,and green infrastructure,and promote conservation,
preservation and stewardship of these aquatic systems.Monitoring aquatic systems
and preparing reports on findings to government authorities,to improve
decision-making.
●Promote a Community Restoration Network for the region to provide practical
knowledge,scientific understanding,and proven expertise to communities,while
meeting restoration goals through volunteer-driven,community and science-based
ecological restoration projects.
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●Require all new construction to protect and restore natural features such as
waterways,creeks &wetlands in urban areas as a means of connecting residents
with nature and reversing damage to natural systems.Where feasible,restore
creek corridors in urban areas.Creeks currently diverted in culverts or hardened
channels should be restored to their natural state.
●Protect,restore and preserve our natural spaces,hillsides and vistas.Identify
and create an inventory of areas in the region with significant natural habitat,open
space and recreation resources and promote conservation,preservation and
environmental rehabilitation of these lands.Work with property owners to acquire or
dedicate those lands that could be preserved as open space.
●Develop hillside development guidelines that will ensure construction activities
retain natural vegetation and topography and minimize grading of hillside.Minimize
soil depletion and prevent erosion.
●Prohibit and eradicate the use of invasive plant species such as broom and
ivies,especially adjacent to wetlands,riparian areas,or other sensitive habitat.
Require landscaping that replaces turf grass with native species,incorporating
drought-tolerant plants and sustainable maintenance practices and standards.Plant
rain gardens to absorb rainwater running off roofs or asphalt.
●Restoring ecosystems through afforestation.Provide trees on residential and
mixed-use neighborhoods.Ensure a 3 to 1 replacement of all trees removed.Plant
trees to shade county buildings,businesses and residential homes to reduce
energy use and sequester carbon. Plant 90,000 trees by 2025.
●Bay Area counties will provide tax credits and other incentives to reforest and
rewild marginal land to capture and sequester CO2 from the atmosphere and
serve as carbon capture sinks.
●Require green infrastructure such as impervious surfaces to reduce stormwater
runoff and provide swales and retention basins.
9. Climate adaptation and emergency planning
In the Bay Area,we must become a collective of Climate-Resilient Communities,for our
own economic and material survival.Under the Bay Area Green New Deal,we will
strengthen community and natural environment resilience through climate adaptation
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and emergency planning efforts.Each county will name and address climate action
explicitly,and will incorporate Climate Action Plan goals and strategies within their
General Plans.The region will incorporate climate adaptation and resilience strategies
into all relevant policies to protect environmental quality,as well as public health and
safety, with a focus on disadvantaged communities.
●Identify all infrastructure,particularly industrial infrastructure at risk of floods,
seismic and/or liquefaction risk,and enhanced wildfire risk due to climate change.
Require needed safety upgrades identified in hazard mitigation assessment and
emergency preparedness policies and procedures and hold public meetings to
discuss these plans and ensure widespread understanding and confidence in these
plans.
●Rebuild the region’s crumbling infrastructure.In order to remain resilient to the
climate impacts we know are coming,we must repair our crumbling infrastructure.
Dangerously outdated infrastructure is not ready to withstand impacts like floods,
hurricanes,or wildfires.Under the Bay Area Green New Deal,the region will also
promote legislation and campaigns to rebuild any aging infrastructure.
●Retrofit our public infrastructure to withstand climate impacts.Beyond
repairing our existing crumbling infrastructure,we must ensure that our public
highways,bridges and water systems are ready for climate impacts we know are
coming.The region will invest in our roads,bridges,and water infrastructure to
ensure it is resilient to climate impacts,and to ensure that all new infrastructure built
over the next 10 years is also resilient.
●Create a regional jurisdiction-wide program for mitigating greenhouse gas
emissions and vehicle miles traveled that incentivizes carbon sequestration,
zero-emission buildings and vehicles,soil building agricultural activities,and natural
based shoreline adaptation measures and social resilience.
●Tax credits and other incentives must be provided for the installation of
energy storage technology in homes,commercial buildings,institutional buildings,
and industrial facilities to provide backup power –both to manage intermittent
power grid energy across and to provide on-site supplies of emergency power
should the grid be compromised by climate events or cyberterrorist attack.
●Build resilient,affordable,publicly owned broadband infrastructure.Internet
access and communications are key in the wake of a disaster.In order to ensure
that communities get the help they need,the region will provide infrastructure
grants and technical assistance for municipalities and counties to build publicly
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owned and democratically controlled,co-operative,or open access broadband
networks.This communications infrastructure will ensure first responders and
communities are ready to deal with the worst climate emergencies.
●Repair and modernize public housing including making all public housing
accessible,conducting deep energy retrofits of all public housing,and providing
access to high-speed broadband.We will also ensure that public housing has
quality,shared community spaces to ensure every public housing complex has the
capacity to serve as a community resiliency center.
●Increase funding for firefighting to deal with more frequent and severe
wildfires.In order to be able to quickly and effectively respond to wildfires,the
region will expand the wildfire restoration and disaster preparedness workforce.The
region will increase funding for firefighting to deal with the increased severity and
frequency of wildfires.Under the Bay Area Green New Deal,we will facilitate
community evacuation plans that include people experiencing homelessness,and
increase social cohesion for rapid and resilient recovery from climate impacts to
avoid the use of martial law and increased policing in disaster response.
●Protect community cohesion.Our disaster response should ensure that to the
extent possible,families are able to return to their home communities.The region
will ensure that recovery and rebuilding efforts make affected communities stronger
than they were before any disasters so they are more resilient to deal with a
potential next disaster.
10. Research and development
The Bay Area must substantially increase research and development in all of the areas
that accompany the transformation into green technologies of the Green Industrial
Revolution.The science is clear that the entire global economy must decarbonize by
2050 at latest if we hope to stave off the worst impacts of climate change.We must be
extremely careful to ensure that as we do this,we make sure that domestic
manufacturing and clean economy industries thrive.The state and Bay Area region
have an obligation and an economic opportunity to be a leader in developing and
deploying the clean technological solutions that will solve climate change.
●Every level of governance should give particular attention to funding
research,development,and deployment to accelerate the transition from fossil
fuel-based markets to renewable energy processes and products.
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●Explore the expansion of potential technologies built around renewable
energy production,for example,Wave Energy (power generated by ocean
waves), Tidal Energy, and GeoThermal.
●Explore technological development and research to dramatically decrease the
cost of energy storage and meet daily and long term reliability needs.The aim is
also to decrease the cost of daily cycling storage resources in order to reliably and
affordably replace all coal and natural gas plants that serve as backup on the grid.
●In order to ensure an affordable and complete transition away from fossil fuels in
the transportation sector,the region will invest in research and development to
decrease the cost of electric vehicles.
●Invest in decarbonizing the shipping and aviation industries as soon as
possible.The counties must identify and commercialize technologies to ensure the
region is able to fully decarbonize as soon as possible,but by no later than 2050.
Counties will collaboratively fund an effort to research technologies to fully
decarbonize industry, aviation, maritime shipping and transportation.
●To prevent an outsized impact on the environment from harvesting raw
materials,the region will build wind turbines,solar panels,new cars,and batteries
with as many recycled materials as possible.Counties will establish a “take back”
program to require large corporations that produce goods with the materials needed
for this clean energy transition to pay to take those goods back from consumers
who no longer want them to establish a region-wide materials recycling program.
●The region will invest in research to develop new,region-appropriate farming
techniques and seeds.In order to respond to climate change and heal the
environment,we will need to invest in non-chemical intensive practices and seed
varieties that are tailored to each region's climate and soil.
●Provisions to fund and promote programs in our state and U.C.universities
and colleges towards environmental sustainable research and development,
including educational and vocational curriculums.
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In order for bold climate action to be at the center of local conversation,Bay Area
citizens and communities must come to the table and advocate for it.If you support the
policy priorities outlined in the Bay Area Green New Deal,here are several important
steps you can take to make them a reality.
Ensure the creation and implementation of the Green New Deal is accessible to
people with disabilities and non-English speakers.All publications will be in multiple
languages,including Braille,and meetings will have language interpreters,including
sign language, as appropriate.
Endorse the plan and tell your elected officials that you support it.Email your City
Council members and other regional leadership with letters of support for the Bay Area
Green New Deal.Tell them why it matters to you and how climate change affects you.
Remind your elected officials that this is the issue of our time,and that you are paying
attention to if and how they show up to the conversation.
Share the plan,and invite authors to present it to your group,class,event,
neighborhood,or organization.Help share these ideas far and wide with your social
circles.Show it to someone new.Post one of the policy ideas in this document to social
media and invite others to weigh in.Keep the conversation alive.Organize a group to
hear more about the plan, and invite authors to engage in continued dialogue about it.
Participate in Council and Climate Action Commission meetings to voice support.
When policy issues related to this plan come to the any Bay Area City Council and
Climate Action Commission agenda,your voice matters.Show up to speak on items
related to climate action.Tell your policymakers directly why this matters and how it
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affects you.Build community support for policy initiatives that help us reach our goals.
Demand bold action.
Make the plan even stronger.Now that you’ve read the plan,you may have your own
ideas about making climate action a reality in the Bay Area.Help strengthen this
movement by sharing your insights,experience,and expertise related to the policy
areas outlined in this plan.Keep connecting the ideas outlined in this document to local
organizations, initiatives, and more.
Register to vote,and vote for green thinkers in 2020.Progress is only possible with
political will.Don’t settle for candidates that are not committed to bold climate action.
Register now,and vote in every single election,like this world depends on it.In order to
create and implement the policies that move us forward into and beyond 2026,green
leaders need to be at the table.
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The City of Dublin’s Green Economic Recovery Act
We are in a climate crisis.
We are in an economic crisis.
Recognizing the urgency of climate change and understanding the need for transitioning to a
Green economy, the city of Dublin will help lead the economy of the future.
With smart policies creating job growth and sustainability, the City of Dublin will emerge stronger
out of the COVID-19 pandemic. We will maintain our region’s leadership of innovation and
prosperity, with focused planning and investments on the city and county level.
Structural transformation requires us to direct resources to previously disinvested
neighborhoods, lifting up front-line voices, and restoring a safe and healthy environment for all
to enjoy.
Dublin will take bold action to shape a more just and sustainable future.
Recovery from the pandemic requires leadership to set a collective vision grounded in
community. Now is a time for the creativity and community empowerment.
When cities lead, we can transform society. Cities set the agenda and drive momentum for
larger legislative change.
We will use the following direct levers of power within municipal control:
•Inclusive mixed-use zoning and land use integrated with transportation planning –
Guarantee vibrant and resilient communities through zoning and land use decisions.
•Green municipal purchasing, procurement and contracting – Use shared wealth to
enhance local green economy and jobs, source sustainably, and shape industry standards.
•Public employment benefits and economic stability – Ensure fair hiring standards, racial
justice training, employment programs to anchor shared prosperity and economic mobility.
•Municipal assets and public infrastructure – Invest in resilient public infrastructure (e.g.
parks, schools, public housing, city vehicles, roads and sidewalks, and utilities)
•Participatory budgeting and investments – Bring affected communities into deciding what
to fund and how to invest city assets, support creation of public banks for fair funding
access.
•Local regulation fees – Generate resources to address harmful market externalities (e.g.
vacant units, excessive waste or water use, predatory short-term rentals, traffic congestion).
•Local legislation and regulations – Enact local ordinances to protect public health and
welfare (e.g. living wage ordinances, wetlands protection ordinances).
•Financial, permitting and land use incentives – Examples include tax abatements or fast-
tracked permits, e.g. onsite resiliency measures, local hiring, affordable commercial spaces.
•Advocacy for state and federal action – Reform and shape the direction of state and
federal plans through a unified agenda set by regional city partners representing community
interests.
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The Dublin Green Economic Recovery Act consists of the following policy areas and action
items:
1.Accelerating decarbonization: reach citywide carbon neutrality by 2040, 100% percent
sustainable electricity by 2035, and net-zero municipal buildings by 2030.
•Increase the adoption of renewable heating and cooling technologies.
•Require all new buildings to be net-zero carbon.
•Advocate through a California Climate Mayors’ Purchasing Collaborative to ensure funds
are earmarked for electrification of public transportation systems.
•Revisit Community Choice Aggregation during periodic electricity contract negotiations
with the utility to increase the default percent coming from renewables. When feasible,
consider making the default 100 percent renewable, with an “opt-out” option.
•Enact a ban on construction of new natural gas infrastructure to protect resident health.
•Advocate for statewide legislation promoting 100 percent renewable energy and the
creation of funding pools to help cities achieve that goal.
2.Comprehensive Justice Audit and Framework: analyze municipal processes (hiring,
decision-making, leadership, budgets, communications), and receive community feedback
on access to government services and barriers to justice.
•Resources to support language access and assistive technology for people with a
communications disability must be timely and expanded.
•Institute racial and social justice training for city employees and ensure employees have
a safe and accountable office to raise concerns.
•Set up a Racial and Social Justice Policy Review Committee to analyze municipal
legislation, executive orders, and budget allocations for their justice impacts.
•Formalize interdepartmental communications to ensure city processes, policies and
plans align and work towards shared justice goals.
•Create a visible online platform and mechanisms for real-time feedback on how the City
can adapt its operations, policies and programs to equitably serve the community.
•Advocate at the state level for the passage of environmental and racial justice legislation
to enshrine the proactive protection of communities under state law.
3.Clean Energy Financing: issue Green Municipal Bonds earmarked to accelerate the
installation of solar and efficiency measures, and ease upfront costs for private property
owners to install energy efficiency upgrades or convert to renewable energy by opting into
the state Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program.
•Research the potential for municipal utilities, which removes the profit incentive to
restrict the availability of more affordable, renewable energy services.
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•Pass an ordinance requiring medium and large buildings to publicly post their energy
efficiency “grade”, a program similar to publicly posted inspection grades.
•Build a coalition of large institutions and facilities (e.g. hospitals, business parks)
within the city and region to discuss ways to enhance implementation of decarbonized
district energy solutions, renewable procurement and energy efficiency upgrades.
4.Green Workforce Development: ensure local green jobs with good wages and benefits,
worker protection, and accessible workforce development pathways. Design programs with
active engagement of organized labor and workers centers. Collaborate and learn from
existing jobs training programs, and local green companies and industries.
•Implement hire-local requirements for city climate resiliency, sustainability and energy
efficiency projects.
•Create a jobs training program to foster collaboration between youth and local nonprofits
or businesses that implement resiliency projects.
•Pass an ordinance to ban use of Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) records
to determine eligibility for local jobs programs, educational training, licensing, and
housing.
•Institute Community Workforce Agreements for municipal resiliency projects to ensure
more residents benefit from work experience in sustainable construction and planning.
5.Divest or Reinvest in a Climate-Just Future: reflect long-term prosperity and
sustainability values for public investments and use municipal power to shift investments
away from harmful industries to companies that help create a more socially and climate-just
city.
•Screen municipal insurance policyholders for fossil fuel and other investments not
meeting socially responsible standards and divest when these standards are not met.
•Explore creation of a municipal bank which will provide low-interest loans to local small
businesses and community-based resilience projects.
6.City Climate Workforce: provide year-round employment and training to address
important climate infrastructure needs. This Workforce will work to improve the quality of
open spaces, climate resilience, weatherization of older buildings, zero waste infrastructure
such as composting and reuse, and community engagement.
•Expand an city arts program that trains residents in interactive art, murals, sculpture and
public beautification.
•Partner with social justice and community-based organizations to pilot eco-districts.
•Provide technical and logistical assistance to local garden exchange and reuse
programs.
•Plant native species and raise native pollinators to restore local ecosystems while
ensuring the preservation of local species that are best adapted to this area.
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7.Renters’ Right to Counsel: Establishing legal representation for renters would protect
against unwarranted or potentially illegal evictions. Such programs have been shown to
double the number of families who retain occupancy while saving public dollars overall.
•Advocate for state legislation to implement municipal rent stabilization policies.
•Institute an Empty Homes tax for units left vacant more than six months.
•Revisit Just Cause Eviction legislation to curb no-fault evictions.
•Advocate for a Tenant’s Bill of Rights at the state level.
8.Just and Resilient Development: Aligning private development with equity and resiliency
goals and designate zoning overlay districts for affordability with anti-displacement
protections to support sustainable development of healthy and accessible housing.
•Implement structural changes to the Zoning Board of Appeals to require expertise in
climate change and environmental protection, and urban planning.
•Create an independent planning board and city departments subject to oversight and
accountability, charging the city planning department with undertaking a true citywide
master planning process to update the zoning code to match community needs.
•Mandate that any private development receiving tax breaks or other public incentives
detail the environmental and climate justice costs and benefits of the proposed project,
including pollution, affordability and transit impacts.
9.Climate Resilient Infrastructure: Investment in low and zero-carbon infrastructure
projects.
•Collaborate with the US Green City Bonds Coalition to pursue green municipal bonds
for large-scale climate resilient infrastructure investments.
•Institute a local excess waste fee to fund a municipal reuse and recycling center to
repurpose construction materials, office items, electronics and household materials.
•Hire resilience liaisons to propose and coordinate climate-resilient infrastructure and
development upgrades across relevant municipal departments.
10.Transportation Justice – Multimodal Infrastructure & Fare-free Transit: improve
accessibility and reliability of multimodal transportation options through the regulation of
street infrastructure and allocation of public space for roadways and sidewalks.
•Institute transit impact fees for new development that are collected in a citywide fund and
used to finance equitable, multi-modal transportation improvements across the city.
•Improve existing bike lanes with protective infrastructure and link up unconnected lanes.
•Plan for car-free districts and days to promote biking and walking in cultural districts and
smaller commercial areas.
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•Determine if congestion pricing can address local and regional transit inequities.
•Regulate operation of delivery trucks to reduce congestion and emissions.
•Implement vehicle miles traveled (VMT) fees for ride-hailing services to curb empty ride-
hail driving and idling.
•Expand transit service to include late-night hours, which disproportionately benefits
service workers, students, low-income residents and residents of color.
•Advocate at the state level for rapid electrification of public transit vehicles and
sustainable financing mechanisms.
11.Equitable Small Business Recovery: leverage municipal contracting to anchor local
wealth-building by committing to equity and diversity contracting goals supported by
technical assistance grants and city staffing.
•Introduce a formula retail ordinance to regulate chain stores in commercial districts.
•Partner with commercial property owners to facilitate the reuse of vacant buildings and
business spaces.
•Identify barriers to local procurement and implement a small-business equity
procurement strategy for municipal contracts as well as a procure-local requirement for
municipal sub-contractors.
•Craft guidelines for sustainable workplace options including transit passes, flexible
hours, work-from-home schedules with area business councils and advocacy
organizations.
12.Food justice – Good Food Purchasing & Urban Agriculture: Universal access to
nutritious food is fundamental for public health, and economic opportunity, as well as social
resiliency in the face of climate change and natural disasters. The pandemic has exposed
and exacerbated severe food insecurity among low income residents and some immigrant
communities.
•Incentivize creation of urban agriculture and public activation spaces on privately owned
land through tax incentives for temporary uses or zoning incentives for permanent uses.
•Contract out to nonprofit organizations that are skilled in connecting local farmers with
markets and corner stores to provide an accessible first stop for fresh, local food.
•Expand infrastructure for composting and anaerobic digestion of organic waste.
•Expand zoning permissions and approvals to allow for easier creation of both private
and community gardens.
•Conduct outreach and enrollment assistance for SNAP and other nutrition assistance
programs at community centers and health centers to increase uptake by residents.
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13.Greening the City: Encourage the planting of trees in our communities. Create programs
for families and young people to make small forestry investments in their city.
•Pass a Heritage Tree ordinance that protects trees above a certain diameter and age.
Removal of a Heritage Tree on public or private land can either be subject to a public
hearing or, in certain cases, banned outright with commensurate fines for violations.
•Bring together the city’s electric utility providers and local nonprofits focused on city
greening to scope out the viability of a utility-sponsored planting program on private
property to reduce energy (see Sacramento’s partnership program).
•Explore mechanisms for incentivizing tree planting and protection on existing business,
commercial and industrial properties through programs like City Forest Credits.
•Partner with state agencies and local horticultural and landscaping employers to support
creation of a “Roots to Re-Entry” training program for residents transitioning back into
their communities from incarceration to gain greenspace management and horticultural
skills.
•Consider the benefits and liabilities of planting fruit trees in public spaces, including the
increased management such trees would need.
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