Hi friends,
New Yorkers are prone to bursting into this bit of song:
If I can make it there
I'll make it anywhere
It's up to you
New York, New York
There are six bills that we should push this week in New York, and many of them deal with issues that are in the national conversation. It is important that we lead the way.
I’ve been a little confused about the timeline for signing legislation in NYS. I originally thought the governor had just thirty days to sign a bill at the end of the session before it would be pocket-vetoed.
(If you click the link above and scroll to the last three paragraphs, you will understand my confusion.)
It turns out that if the legislative session is over when the bill passes (this happens when they go into overtime), the bills have technically not been sent to the governor's desk. And this means that the bills don’t expire until the start of the next session, which begins in January.
So we have an opportunity to get Governor Hochul to finish the last session’s legislative work!
One of the bills we fought hard to get passed was the two year moratorium on fossil fueled cryptomining. This is important climate legislation and anti-pollution legislation, which
would also require crypto operations to be subject to an environmental impact review.
You can personalize your message to the governor by adding a line or two about how fossil fuel powered cryptomining operations may kill our children! (see below)
Call on Governor Hochul (again!) to sign the cryptomining moratorium. This quick action is from Earth Justice.
Breathing in tiny particles of air pollution may trigger irregular heart rhythms in otherwise healthy teenagers and increase their risk of sudden cardiac death, a new study has found.
Call on the Governor and the Department of Environmental Conservation to deny permits to National Grid for two new LNG vaporizers. This ready-made action comes from No NBK Pipeline.
My own springling co-authored Big Oil Lies: What Is Big Oil Really Doing With Their Massive Profits? — an important exposé that provides details of the greenwashing and self-dealing by fossil fuel companies that continues to jeopardize our chances of taking effective climate action.
Highlighting that Big Oil has hiked prices to rake in record profits, which have funded stock buybacks that serve shareholders—including executives with stock holdings—the report warns that "continued reliance on fossil fuels will keep pouring money into the pockets of those who are most protected from the damage of the climate crisis and rising costs, while the vast majority of Americans and people around the world suffer."
Kathy Hochul has been taking money from the crypto industry. No doubt, she is lending her ear to their interests.
Anna Kelles, the legislator behind the moratorium, has written:
“Not signing the cryptomining moratorium bill immediately is simply irresponsible. The bill is not retroactive, so delaying will allow mines to open and operate in the interim. Refiring old, inefficient, fossil-fuel based power plants will send New York in the wrong direction, away from our climate goals.”
In Hochul’s first State of the State Address, she remarked:
Too often, previous administrations worked against, not with, the Legislature, or altogether ignored the critical, constitutional role of the Legislature in our government.
In the same speech, she affirmed her role in defending the right to
clean air, clean water, and a clean environment for every New Yorker.
It is essential to take meaningful climate action, ensure that people receive preventive health care and appropriate placement if they suffer serious mental illness, protect folks financially from utility rate hikes and interest on student debt, and have access to medication during a climate disaster.
Here are the other bills on our agenda, in addition to the cryptomining moratorium:
S688/A807, which requires insurance coverage to prevent HIV infection,
S1389/A815, which requires public hearings for utility rate hikes,
S7862B/A10261, which prohibits state agencies from charging additional interest on student debts
S2144/A2441, which defines “serious mental illness” for people who are incarcerated, in order to ensure that they are not held in solitary confinement
S1086/A1905, which requires the state disaster plan to include logistics for the distribution of medical supplies and medication
Send Governor Hochul a message to sign these important pieces of legislation! This is a 30-second action.
It’s up to you.
with love,
L