Albany, NY – We write to affirm our support for the Climate and Community Protection Act (S.2992/A.3876), introduced in the New York State Senate by Senator Todd Kaminsky and in the Assembly by Assembly Member Steve Englebright. We thank you for your leadership and expressed commitment to passing bold climate change policy for the state, and we ask that we collectively act to pass this critical piece of legislation as soon as possible.

As members of the New York State Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic & Asian Legislative Caucus, we are committed to addressing climate change as an issue of racial and economic justice. Climate change does not affect all people equally. As a result of historic and ongoing inequities in the distribution of resources in our communities – communities of color and low-income communities – our residents have faced a disproportionate burden of pollution and are at greater risk in the face of climate change impacts. In addressing climate change and moving to a renewable energy economy, we must protect and invest in the communities that are the most vulnerable.

The CCPA is a bill that will address the racial and economic disparities present in the increasingly urgent climate crisis we face. More than just a climate policy, the CCPA is also a bold racial justice bill. It legally mandates a transition to 100 percent renewable energy, economy-wide by 2050; while also ensuring that pollution reductions and programmatic investments in clean energy are targeted for the benefit of the most impacted communities and especially communities of color. The CCPA will direct 40% of all state energy investments to benefit disadvantaged communities.

It sets up an equity screen to ensure state energy policies leave no community behind; it creates strong wage and contracting standards for the jobs that will be created in a renewable energy transition; and it establishes a climate justice working group to ensure that the voices and ideas of environmental and social justice leaders in impacted communities have a place at the table in the design and implementation of New York’s renewable energy transformation under the CCPA.

This legislation is based on the principles of climate justice – the intersection of climate change with racial and economic justice – principles we must act on to the benefit of all New Yorkers. With the CCPA, we can dramatically reduce damaging greenhouse gas emissions by catalyzing community solar development, energy efficiency retrofits, offshore wind, electric buses, and more, based on the identified needs of local communities. A transition to a 100% renewable energy economy is estimated to create more than 200,000 jobs in the first decade. Bold action today is a down payment on the state’s future, and we can rise to the climate challenge by uplifting tens of thousands of new clean energy workers while protecting our most vulnerable communities at the same time.

The CCPA would position New York to lead the national debate on how we can tackle climate change and invest in creating a more just and equitable economy. We look forward to working with you to ensure the swift passage of this strong and vital legislation.