Show Up for the Energy Affordability Vote on July 1!

We’re approaching the very end of this legislative session. The MA Senate Energy Affordability bill has been released and amendments have been filed. ECA Mass has been following the pieces of legislation that are in this bill since last spring. The Senate will be voting on the bill on Wednesday July 1, and we need to be in the Senate Gallery to show senators we care about how they vote. Look for an Action Alert with details regarding what time to arrive. 

Updates on Other Bills We Have Supported

ECA Mass has been advocating for no cuts to the Mass Save Program, restricting the Gas System Enhancement Program (GSEP), and restricting utilities charging rate payers for lobbying and marketing costs among other items. These items are in the bill. After the Senate votes on the bill, it will go to a House and Senate Conference committee. This may take up to a month to negotiate a final version.

The MA House passed the Environmental Bond bill (EBB). The Climate Bank bill was included - but only with language to create a “report.” According to the bill sponsor, Rep Joan Meschino, this will position the bill well for the next legislative session. For more information, please contact ECA member John Micklejohn (jmiserve183@gmail.com), a leader of the Climate Bank Coalition, which was instrumental in getting so much support for the bill. Congratulations, John!

Municipal Reforestation - Pluses and Minuses

The basics of the Municipal Reforestation bill are incorporated into the EBB. There is support for tree planting programs and tree stocks and prioritization of areas with low tree canopy, underserved populations, and heat islands. Thirty million in bonding supports these and related initiatives.

Key provisions in our bill that were omitted are the requirement to use native tree species whenever possible, development of an in-state supply of native trees, and a jobs program to train and hire tree care specialists. There is also no provision for an expert independent advisory commission. While we’re happy to see potential funding for municipal tree planting programs, we have concerns about allocation of the funding, as forest tree planting has been added into the mix and may absorb part of the funding that would be used for urban reforestation.

We were disappointed that the sections that deal with publicly owned forest lands under the control of the Department of Conservation and Recreation and the Fisheries and Wildlife Division include none of the protections for forests that we had worked for. There is no legal protection of the reserves. One provision says the land cannot be managed for logging, but there are so many provisos and room for manipulation that it would be difficult to fight decisions made by EEA and DCR. In short, the legal and procedural protections we had endorsed are omitted.

The Drought bill was included in the Senate language and it will be up to the conference committee to accept it in the final version. The plastic bag ban and single use plastic bills did not pass.

The EBB will now go to a conference committee. For more detailed information please contact the Natural Solutions committee through Betty Krikorian, linnbet@aol.com.

The MA House vote for the EBB lacked transparency, and many climate advocates are very disappointed in the process. The amendments were bundled together and the public could not see which ones made it into the package. ECA will be following up on this flawed process with other advocates. If you are interested in being part of this effort please contact Launa Zimmaro, launa@zimmaro.com.

Tina Grosowsky 

ECA Mass owes a big debt to John Meiklejohn. In a small town in Western MA, John created an amazing and effective coalition of climate advocates. After retirement as a psychotherapist, John has divided his community service time between American Chestnut restoration (he manages a research orchard on his property), advocating for climate-related legislation at the state level, and, from 2017 to the present, serving on the leadership team of a local Indivisible group. John and his wife, Sarah live in Granville in a beautiful old farmhouse on a large acreage, including a barn and chestnut tree farm. 

As a new member of ECA Mass, John got involved with the legislative team and last year realized that an important piece of legislation - the Climate Bank bill - filed by his state senator, Paul Mark and co-sponsored by Rep Joan Meschino - needed a light shone on it. John saw that a bill that would create a public and private partnership to provide funding for clean energy solutions was key. 

John worked with a partner, Susan Ebitz, and slowly began to build a coalition with other ECA members, as well as colleagues in the climate and environmental organizations in his area. They were able to identify key legislators in both senate and house districts and targeted them for advocacy on the upcoming Environmental Bond Bill vote. By focusing on specific legislators, they were able to engage members to take a lead role in their own legislative district to organize meetings with legislators. Over the last several months, John was successful in organizing over 20 meetings with legislators across the state.  

The Climate Bank bill was successfully incorporated in the Senate Environmental Bond Bill with language that included it as a “report” that needed to be completed by January 2027. Rep Meschino views this as favorable because it positions the bill well for the next legislative session. Well done, John!

Tina Grosowsky