Time for WA to go big on investing in climate action

TONY SWARTZ

January 17, 2023

We now start our new legislative session with new opportunities for climate action and we wanted to offer you a chance to connect with your legislators to make sure they hear about it now.

The urgency of the climate crisis requires bold and meaningful action every single year. In 2023, our Legislature must prioritize the health and safety of Washingtonians and ensure we advance true climate solutions in several key ways.

Please call the Legislative HOTLINE today at 1-800-562-6000 and leave a message for your legislators! Tell them: "Please invest the Climate Commitment Act dollars wisely by including programs to clean up medium and heavy duty vehicles and incentivize heat pumps for low-income homes and small businesses."

Together we have made major progress this past year, including requiring that all new buildings in Washington state – commercial and residential – will be built with heat pumps starting in July 2023!

Now, we must keep the momentum going.

Washington’s transformative Climate Commitment Act went into effect on January 1st, 2023 and our state expects this cap-and-invest program to generate billions by making polluters pay for climate, clean energy, and community investments.

The Legislature should invest these dollars wisely, making sure the funds cut pollution faster, invest in communities that need it the most and can afford it the least, and accelerate many needed solutions across our economy and state.

Specifically, significant funding for:

cleaning up medium and heavy duty vehicles, like buses, trucks, and semis
heat pumps for homes and small businesses
weatherization for low income households
communities overburdened by the impacts of poor air quality and climate change
natural solutions that help build a resilient future

Please call the Legislative HOTLINE now: 1-800-562-6000 and leave a message for your legislators:

"Please invest the Climate Commitment Act dollars wisely by including programs to clean up medium and heavy duty vehicles and incentivize heat pumps for low-income homes and small businesses."

Your call will help them know that climate should continue to be a top priority issue, and that you are counting on them to invest in climate action wisely.

Author Bio

Joëlle Robinson

Field Director, Climate Solutions

Joëlle engages community members and diverse constituencies—faith, health, youth, parents, business—to make their voices heard for climate solutions. She led the team of organizers to ensure we stopped any coal export from the U.S. West Coast over the past decade. On offense, she co-led the Field team to help pass the 100% Clean Electricity (Clean Energy Transition Act in 2019) and in 2022 collaborated with the Field team to ensure that all new buildings (commercial and residential) will be built with heat pumps per the State Building Code Council. She continues to conspire for good with them on many other local and state initiatives.

Joëlle was the Regional Outreach Coordinator of National Wildlife Federation where she focused on mobilizing hunters, anglers and concerned citizens around solutions to global warming. Previous work with Climate Solutions includes the NW Climate Connections partnership, serving as the Field Assistant for the successful Clean Cars campaign, and Field Director of the Renewable Fuel Standard, which passed in April 2006.

She previously served on the boards of Earth Ministry, Solar Washington, and Sierra Club Executive Committee. She’s currently President of the board of her 3 year-old!

Joëlle is Northwest born and raised who loves to hike, dance, travel and explore the natural world.

Her favorite quote is “Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” — Mary Oliver