IV 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 25 Encouraging the Architect of the Capitol to transition to the exclusive use of electricity derived from renewable energy sources to power the United States Capitol Complex by 2032. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MARCH 26, 2021 Mr. NEGUSE (for himself, Ms. NORTON, and Mr. HUFFMAN) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure CONCURRENT RESOLUTION Encouraging the Architect of the Capitol to transition to the exclusive use of electricity derived from renewable energy sources to power the United States Capitol Com- plex by 2032. Whereas according to the 2018 National Climate Assessment, without substantial and sustained global mitigation and regional adaption efforts, climate change is expected to cause growing losses to American infrastructure and property and impede the rate of economic growth over this century; Whereas according to the 2018 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Report on Global Warm- ing of 1.5° Celsius, to avoid the most devastating impacts of climate change, the world must limit the warming of VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:16 Mar 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HC25.IH HC25 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HCON 25 IH the global average temperature to 1.5° Celsius above preindustrial levels; Whereas according to the IPCC, reaching and sustaining net zero global anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions is necessary for halting anthropogenic global warming; Whereas according to the IPCC, in order to limit global warming to 1.5° Celsius above preindustrial levels, the world must achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, which will require rapid, dramatic changes in how governments, in- dustries, and societies function; Whereas the IPCC has reported that in comparison to global warming of 1.5° Celsius, global warming of 2° Celsius will result in a greater number of severe heat waves, more extreme storms, increased poverty, and the deg- radation of critical ecosystems; Whereas climate change impacts will be felt disproportion- ately by communities of color and low-income commu- nities; Whereas to address the urgent need to limit global warming to 1.5° Celsius, the IPCC has recommended increasing installation of renewable energy systems, with a goal of such systems generating 70 to 80 percent of global elec- tricity by 2050; Whereas investing in the clean energy economy, with strong labor and procurement standards, will create quality jobs; Whereas according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2020 was the warmest year on record globally; Whereas the world’s cities occupy 2 percent of global land mass, but are responsible for up to 70 percent of harmful greenhouse gas emissions; VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:16 Mar 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HC25.IH HC25 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HCON 25 IH Whereas more than 350 mayors in the United States have adopted the Paris Agreement goals for their cities, in- cluding Washington, DC; Whereas in the fight against climate change, cities and coun- ties have become important leaders because of their role as laboratories, incubators, and implementers of climate solutions; Whereas, on January 18, 2019, District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser signed the CleanEnergy DC Omnibus Amendment Act of 2018, which mandates that, by 2032, 100 percent of the electricity sold at retail in the District be derived from renewable energy sources, and also in- cludes an ambitious building performance standard; and Whereas it is critical that Congress leads by example for American cities, communities, and people, by committing to renewable energy to combat climate change: Now, therefore, be it Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 1 concurring), 2 SECTION 1. ENCOURAGING TRANSITION TO EXCLUSIVE 3 USE OF ELECTRICITY DERIVED FROM RE- 4 NEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES FOR THE 5 UNITED STATES CAPITOL COMPLEX. 6 (a) TRANSITION.—In order to address climate 7 change, and in keeping with the recommendations of 8 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and con- 9 sistent with the Building Energy Performance Standard 10 Program of the District of Columbia, Congress encourages 11 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:16 Mar 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HC25.IH HC25 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HCON 25 IH the Architect of the Capitol to transition to the exclusive 1 use of electricity derived from renewable energy sources 2 to power the United States Capitol Complex by 2032. 3 (b) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘United 4 States Capitol Complex’’ means the Capitol buildings (as 5 defined in section 5101 of title 40, United States Code) 6 and the United States Capitol Grounds (as described in 7 section 5102 of such title). 8 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:16 Mar 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HC25.IH HC25 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS