The Great Lakes Zephyr - Wind Energy & Hydrogen Journal

Stop Raids on Environmental Funds!

From the Great Lakes Environmental Law & Policy Center:

In a desperate effort to plug the state's $2 billion budget
deficit, the Illinois Senate introduced an amendment to HB 7181
that would effectively steal the balances in a variety of
important environmental and energy funds in an effort to balance
the budget. Some of the funds that will be raided if this
amendment passes include:

Natural Areas Acquisition Fund ($3.4 million),
Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development Fund ($22.7
million),
Conservation 2000 Fund ($7.4 million)
Solid Waste Management Fund ($check the #)),
Brownfields Redevelopment Fund ($5.1 million),
Used Tire Management Fund ($3,278,000),
Renewable Energy Resources Trust Fund ($9,510,000), and
Energy Efficiency Trust Fund ($3,040,000)
Many of these funds were just increased in last year's
legislative session. The Renewable Energy Resources Trust and
Energy Efficiency Trust are funded by ratepayers on their
utility bills specifically for these programs.

All these cuts to environmental funds total a whopping
$55,164,000, which would otherwise go towards preserving and
protecting our Illinois environment.

The Senate will be voting on this amendment by Monday while the
House may be considering it early next week. It's important that
you reach out to both your Senator and Representative telling
them to vote no on Amendment 1 to House Bill 7181.

If you've already taken action on this issue, thank you. If you
haven't yet made a phone call, we've made it easier for you so
all you have to do is click below to send both your state
senator and state representative faxes asking them to vote no on
this amendment. Thanks for your support, and enjoy the holiday
weekend!

You can take action on this alert either via email (please see
directions below) or via the web at:
http://actionnetwork.org/campaign/HB7181/

Visit the web address below to tell your friends about this.
http://actionnetwork.org/campaign/HB7181/forward/

We encourage you to take action by June 4, 2004

Prevent Raids on Environmental Funds!

INSTRUCTIONS TO RESPOND VIA THE WEB:
If you have access to a web browser, you can take action on this
alert by going to the following URL:

http://actionnetwork.org/campaign/HB7181/

INSTRUCTIONS TO RESPOND VIA EMAIL:
Just choose the "reply to sender" option on your email program.

Your letter will be addressed and sent to:
Your Representative (if you live in IL)
Your State Senator (if you live in IL)

----THIS LETTER WILL BE SENT IN YOUR NAME----
Dear [decision maker name automatically inserted here],

I am writing asking you to vote against the proposed Amendment
to HB7181, the so-called Budget Stabilization Act. While I
understand the need for the State to balance its budget, it
shouldn't do so by raiding the important environmental and other
specific-purpose funds this Amendment targets. Among the
programs targeted are:

1. The Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development Fund: This
is a critical program that helps to buy remaining open space for
conservation, wildlife habitat and recreation.

2. The Solid Waste Management Fund: This fund, supported by
tipping fees at landfills, is used to support recycling and
waste reduction programs throughout the state.

3. The Used Tire Management Fund: This fund, supported by
disposal fees paid by consumers when replacing their tires, is
used for programs which help to reduce the hazards associated
with the enormous piles of used tires scattered throughout
Illinois. The disposal fee was just increased to provided
additional resources to combat mosquitoes carrying the West Nile
virus.

4. The Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Trust Funds: These
public benefit funds are supported by a small surcharge on the
electric bills of investor-owned utilities' customers and are
used to provide grants for community energy efficiency programs,
energy efficiency retrofits in affordable housing and renewable
energy projects.

In total, funds that help preserve and protect the environment
or encourage better use of energy resources represent over $90
million of the proposed budget transfers in this Amendment. Many
of these programs were years in the making and have made a huge
difference in protecting Illinois' environment.

Thank you for your consideration in rejecting this Amendment.

----END OF LETTER TO BE SENT----

Sincerely,
Xxxx Xxxxx

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If you received this message from a friend, you can sign up for
Environmental Law and Policy Center at:

http://actionnetwork.org/elpc/join.html?r=Opaexc11HjfEE

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