Climate Emergency Act of 2021

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 794 To require the President to declare a national climate emergency under the National Emergencies Act, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 4, 2021 Mr. BLUMENAUER (for himself, Ms. OCASIO-CORTEZ, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Ms. MENG, Mr. WELCH, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. NADLER, Mr. QUIGLEY, Mr. LEVIN of Michigan, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Ms. NORTON, Mr. LEVIN of California, Ms. MATSUI, Mr. DESAULNIER, Ms. PRESSLEY, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. JONES, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. COHEN, Mr. GOMEZ, Mr. YARMUTH, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. NEGUSE, Mr. KHANNA, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. BOWMAN, and Ms. JAYAPAL) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committees on Financial Services, Education and Labor, Energy and Commerce, Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Small Business, for a pe- riod to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for con- sideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the com- mittee concerned A BILL To require the President to declare a national climate emer- gency under the National Emergencies Act, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 17:32 Feb 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H794.IH H794 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 794 IH SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Climate 2 Emergency Act of 2021’’ or the ‘‘Climate Emergency Act 3 of 2021’’. 4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 5 Congress finds the following: 6 (1) The years 2010 to 2019 were the hottest 7 decade on record. 8 (2) Global atmospheric concentrations of the 9 primary global warming pollutant, carbon dioxide— 10 (A) have increased by 40 percent since 11 preindustrial times, from 280 parts per million 12 to 415 parts per million, primarily due to 13 human activities, including the burning of fossil 14 fuels and deforestation; 15 (B) are rising at a rate of 2 to 3 parts per 16 million annually; and 17 (C) must be reduced to not more than 350 18 parts per million, and likely lower, ‘‘if humanity 19 wishes to preserve a planet similar to that on 20 which civilization developed and to which life on 21 Earth is adapted,’’ according to former Na- 22 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration 23 climatologist Dr. James Hansen. 24 (3) Global atmospheric concentrations of other 25 global warming pollutants, including methane, ni- 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 17:32 Feb 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H794.IH H794 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 794 IH trous oxide, and hydrofluorocarbons, have also in- 1 creased substantially since preindustrial times, pri- 2 marily due to human activities, including the burn- 3 ing of fossil fuels. 4 (4) Climate science and observations of climate 5 change impacts, including ocean warming, ocean 6 acidification, floods, droughts, wildfires, and extreme 7 weather, demonstrate that a global rise in tempera- 8 ture of 1.5 degree Celsius above preindustrial levels 9 is already having dangerous impacts on human pop- 10 ulations and the environment. 11 (5) According to the 2018 National Climate As- 12 sessment, climate change due to global warming has 13 caused, and is expected to continue to cause, sub- 14 stantial interference with and growing losses to 15 human health and safety, infrastructure, property, 16 industry, recreation, natural resources, agricultural 17 systems, and quality of life in the United States. 18 (6) According to the National Oceanic and At- 19 mospheric Administration, climate change is already 20 increasing the frequency of extreme weather and 21 other climate-related disasters, including drought, 22 wildfire, and storms that include precipitation. 23 (7) Climate-related natural disasters have in- 24 creased exponentially over the past decade, costing 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 17:32 Feb 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H794.IH H794 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 794 IH the United States more than double the long-term 1 average during the period of 2014 through 2018, 2 with total costs of natural disasters during that pe- 3 riod of approximately $100,000,000,000 per year. 4 (8) According to the Centers for Disease Con- 5 trol and Prevention, there are wide-ranging, acute, 6 and fatal public health consequences from climate 7 change that impact communities across the United 8 States. 9 (9) According to the National Climate and 10 Health Assessment of the United States Global 11 Change Research Program, climate change is a sig- 12 nificant threat to the health of the people of the 13 United States, leading to increased— 14 (A) temperature-related deaths and ill- 15 nesses; 16 (B) air quality impacts; 17 (C) extreme weather events; 18 (D) numbers of vector-borne diseases; 19 (E) waterborne illnesses; 20 (F) food safety, nutrition, and distribution 21 complications; and 22 (G) mental health and well-being concerns. 23 (10) The consequences of climate change al- 24 ready disproportionately impact frontline commu- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 17:32 Feb 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H794.IH H794 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 794 IH nities and endanger populations made especially vul- 1 nerable by existing exposure to extreme weather 2 events, such as children, the elderly, and individuals 3 with pre-existing disabilities and health conditions. 4 (11) Individuals and families on the frontlines 5 of climate change across the United States, includ- 6 ing territories, living with income inequality and pov- 7 erty, institutional racism, inequity on the basis of 8 gender and sexual orientation, poor infrastructure, 9 and lack of access to health care, housing, clean 10 water, and food security are often in close proximity 11 to environmental stressors or sources of pollution, 12 particularly communities of color, indigenous com- 13 munities, and low-income communities, which— 14 (A) are often the first exposed to the im- 15 pacts of climate change; 16 (B) experience outsized risk because of the 17 close proximity of the community to environ- 18 mental hazards and stressors, in addition to 19 collocation with waste and other sources of pol- 20 lution; and 21 (C) have the fewest resources to mitigate 22 those impacts or to relocate, which will exacer- 23 bate preexisting challenges. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 17:32 Feb 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H794.IH H794 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 794 IH (12) According to Dr. Beverly Wright and Dr. 1 Robert Bullard, ‘‘environmental and public health 2 threats from natural and human-made disasters are 3 not randomly distributed, affecting some commu- 4 nities more than others,’’ and therefore a response 5 to the climate emergency necessitates the adoption 6 of policies and processes rooted in principles of ra- 7 cial equity, self-determination, and democracy, as 8 well as the fundamental human rights of all people 9 to clean air and water, healthy food, adequate land, 10 education, and shelter, as promulgated in the 1991 11 Principles of Environmental Justice. 12 (13) Climate change holds grave and immediate 13 consequences not just for the population of the 14 United States, including territories, but for commu- 15 nities across the world, particularly those commu- 16 nities in the Global South on the frontlines of the 17 climate crisis that are at risk of forced displacement. 18 (14) Communities in rural, urban, and subur- 19 ban areas are all dramatically affected by climate 20 change, though the specific economic, health, social, 21 and environmental impacts may be different. 22 (15) The Department of State, the Department 23 of Defense, and the intelligence community have 24 identified climate change as a threat to national se- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 17:32 Feb 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H794.IH H794 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 794 IH curity, and the Department of Homeland Security 1 views climate change as a top homeland security 2 risk. 3 (16) Climate change is a threat multiplier with 4 the potential— 5 (A) to exacerbate many of the challenges 6 the United States already confronts, including 7 conflicts over scarce resources, conditions con- 8 ducive to violent extremism, and the spread of 9 infectious diseases; and 10 (B) to produce new, unforeseeable chal- 11 lenges in the future. 12 (17) The United Nations Intergovernmental 13 Panel on Climate Change projected in 2018 that the 14 Earth could warm 1.5 degrees Celsius above 15 preindustrial levels as early as 2030. 16 (18) The climatic changes resulting from global 17 warming above 1.5 degrees Celsius above 18 preindustrial levels, including changes resulting from 19 global warming of more than 2 degrees Celsius 20 above preindustrial levels, are projected to result in 21 irreversible, catastrophic changes to public health, 22 livelihoods, quality of life, food security, water sup- 23 plies, human security, and economic growth. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 17:32 Feb 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H794.IH H794 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 794 IH (19) The United Nations Intergovernmental 1 Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Eco- 2 system Services found in 2019 that human-induced 3 climate change is pushing the planet toward the 4 sixth mass species extinction, which threatens the 5 food security, water supply, and well-being of billions 6 of people. 7 (20) According to climate scientists, limiting 8 global warming to not more than 1.5 degrees Celsius 9 above preindustrial levels, and likely lower, is most 10 likely to avoid irreversible and catastrophic climate 11 change. 12 (21) Even with global warming up to 1.5 de- 13 grees Celsius above preindustrial levels, the planet is 14 projected to experience— 15 (A) a significant rise in sea levels; 16 (B) extraordinary loss of biodiversity; and 17 (C) intensifying droughts, floods, wildfires, 18 and other extreme weather events. 19 (22) According to climate scientists, addressing 20 the climate emergency will require an economically 21 just phase-out of the use of oil, gas, and coal in 22 order to keep the carbon that is the primary con- 23 stituent of fossil fuels in the ground and out of the 24 atmosphere. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 17:32 Feb 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H794.IH H794 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 794 IH (23) The United Nations Intergovernmental 1 Panel on Climate Change has determined that lim- 2 iting warming through emissions reduction and car- 3 bon sequestration will require rapid and immediate 4 acceleration and proliferation of ‘‘far-reaching, 5 multilevel, and cross-sectoral climate mitigation’’ 6 and ‘‘transitions in energy, land, urban and rural in- 7 frastructure (including transport and buildings), and 8 industrial systems’’. 9 (24) In the United States, massive, comprehen- 10 sive, and urgent governmental action is required im- 11 mediately to achieve the transitions of those systems 12 in response to the severe existing and projected eco- 13 nomic, social, public health, and national security 14 threats posed by the climate crisis. 15 (25) The massive scope and scale of action nec- 16 essary to stabilize the climate will require unprece- 17 dented levels of public awareness, engagement, and 18 deliberation to develop and implement effective, just, 19 and equitable policies to address the climate crisis. 20 (26) The Constitution of the United States pro- 21 tects the fundamental rights to life, liberty, property, 22 and equal protection of the laws. 23 (27) A climate system capable of sustaining 24 human life is fundamental to a free and ordered so- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 17:32 Feb 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H794.IH H794 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 794 IH ciety, and is preservative of fundamental rights, in- 1 cluding the rights to life, liberty, property, personal 2 security, family autonomy, bodily integrity, and the 3 ability to learn, practice, and transmit cultural and 4 religious traditions. 5 (28) The United States has a proud history of 6 collaborative, constructive, massive-scale Federal 7 mobilizations of resources and labor in order to solve 8 great challenges, such as the Interstate Highway 9 System, the Apollo 11 Moon landing, Reconstruc- 10 tion, the New Deal, and World War II. 11 (29) The United States stands uniquely poised 12 to substantially grow the economy and attain social 13 and health benefits from a massive mobilization of 14 resources and labor that far outweigh the costs cli- 15 mate change will inflict as a result of inaction. 16 (30) Millions of middle class jobs can be created 17 by raising labor standards through project labor 18 agreements and protecting and expanding the right 19 of workers to organize so that workers in the United 20 States and the communities of those workers are 21 guaranteed a strong, viable economic future in a 22 zero-emissions economy that guarantees good jobs at 23 fair union wages with quality benefits. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 17:32 Feb 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H794.IH H794 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 794 IH (31) Frontline communities, Tribal govern- 1 ments and communities, people of color, and labor 2 unions must be equitably and actively engaged in the 3 climate mobilization, in such a way that aligns with 4 the 1996 Jemez Principles of Democratic Orga- 5 nizing, and prioritized through local climate mitiga- 6 tion and adaptation planning, policy, and program 7 delivery so that workers in the United States, and 8 the communities of those workers, are guaranteed a 9 strong, viable economic future. 10 (32) A number of local jurisdictions and gov- 11 ernments in the United States, including New York 12 City and Los Angeles, and across the world, includ- 13 ing the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, 14 Portugal, and Canada, have already declared a cli- 15 mate emergency, and a number of State and local 16 governments are considering declaring a climate 17 emergency. 18 (33) State, local, and Tribal governments must 19 be supported in efforts to hold to account those 20 whose activities have deepened and accelerated the 21 climate crisis and who have benefitted from delayed 22 action to address the climate change emergency and 23 to develop a clean energy eco [Text truncated for display. 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