Friday, July 17, 2009

Clean Air Act needs your help in New York

Sen. Gillibrand is one of the first senators to speak out publicly against a hidden provision in the energy bill that would roll back the Clean Air Act. Can you write a letter to the editor to thank her?

Click Here
Dear Move On member,

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is taking a brave stand for clean energy, and we need to support her.

You see, hidden in the energy bill that passed the House last month is a provision that would actually repeal a key section of the Clean Air Act. As a result, we could get a whole new generation of dirty coal power instead of windmills and solar power.

But Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand is fighting to save the Clean Air Act. She was one of the very first senators to speak out, and now she's under a lot of pressure from powerful coal and oil companies to back down.

We've got to show her that New Yorkers are with her. Can you write a letter to the editor to urge Sen. Gillibrand to keep fighting? Our tool makes writing a letter really simple. You can send the letter right from our web site—it only takes a few minutes:

http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51631&id=16598-10220574-Kl1FD0x&t=3

MoveOn members have contacted Sen. Gillibrand about this directly, but to really show our support, it's clear that we need to do more.

If you've never written a letter to the editor before, now is the time to send your first. The letters page is one of the most widely read—and most important—in local newspapers. Members of Congress and their staff read it to understand how their constituents are feeling. And reporters read it as feedback on their coverage.

Here are a few key points for your letter on why Sen. Gillibrand deserves our applause:

  • The Clean Air Act is under attack: The House-passed energy bill includes a hidden provision slipped in by Big Oil and Coal lobbyists. It would repeal a key section of the Clean Air Act that limits global warming pollution from coal-fired power plants, refineries, and other factories. This would help usher in a whole new generation of dirty coal power and crowd out the clean energy jobs we need.1
  • Sen. Gillibrand is fighting the rollback of the Clean Air Act: She told the Albany Times Union that "The EPA has to have authority to regulate coal plants under the Clean Air Act" and promised "to use every bit of persuasive power" to ensure the bill "reflects the needs of New York" by cutting power plant pollution.2
  • Clean energy means more jobs: According to research by the Political Economy Research Institute, wind and solar power create more than double the jobs that we get from coal and oil.3

We need to make sure that when senators do the right thing, they get the praise back home that they deserve. Click here to write your letter to the editor:

http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51631&id=16598-10220574-Kl1FD0x&t=4

Thanks for all you do.

–Anna, Laura, Peter, Ilyse, Steven and the rest of the team
  

Sources:

1. Memo on Clean Air Act authority, Pawa Law, July 2, 2009 [PDF]
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51620&id=16598-10220574-Kl1FD0x&t=5

2. "Climate change legislation now faces senate heat," Albany Times Union, July 12, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51623&id=16598-10220574-Kl1FD0x&t=6

3. "Green Recovery: A Program to Create Good Jobs and Start Building a Low-Carbon Economy," Political Economy Research Institute at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, September 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51621&id=16598-10220574-Kl1FD0x&t=7

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PAID FOR BY MOVEON.ORG POLITICAL ACTION, http://pol.moveon.org/. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. This email was sent to eddie alfaro on July 17, 2009. To change your email address or update your contact info, click here. To remove yourself from this list, click here.

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