Governor Kate Brown Acknowledges OEC Work in State of the State Address
On Friday Governor Kate Brown delivered her second State of the State address. During her broad-ranging address, she provided a snapshot of accomplishments from the past 14 months, including a great deal of environmental progress ushered in during this time. Drawing on the legacy of Governor Tom McCall and the landmark land-use planning laws OEC helped bring to fruition, she declared: “these first-ever achievements over the past 14-months would have made Governor McCall very proud.”
McCall is not the only one who would be, or should be, proud. Governor Brown recognized three environmental achievements that will be key in helping protect Oregonians and the place we love to call home. OEC, our supporters and members, played a pivotal role in all three:
- The Clean Electricity & Coal Transition Bill will transition Oregon’s electricity off of coal-fired power and double our use of clean energy, mandating that 50% of our electricity must come from renewable sources by 2040. This change, combined with our existing hydropower, will give us one of the cleanest power mixes in the nation, if not the world.Governor Brown stated: “Perhaps best of all, just a few weeks ago, I approved the nation’s first ‘coal to clean’ law that gives Oregon a vision for a future free of coal-powered electricity. Although we are still not on track to meet our greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets, we are heading in the right direction. Future generations of Oregonians will judge this generation not on the fact of climate change, but how we responded to it. And I am not about to let them down.”
- Next, Governor Brown highlighted the Toxic Free Kids Act, which will require manufacturers to disclose and phase out hazardous chemicals in consumer products targeted at the youngest, most vulnerable Oregonians: our children.
- Governor Brown also spoke about The Clean Fuels Standard, noting that “over the past year, we took major steps forward to make Oregon cleaner and greener. We adopted landmark clean fuels legislation to help improve air quality and reduce the state’s carbon footprint.” The Standard guarantees that Oregon will reduce climate pollution from transportation fuels by 10% over 10 years. The standard will guarantee 7 million metric tons of carbon pollution stay out of our air, equivalent to 37,500 rail cars of coal.
To watch Governor Brown’s full State of the State address, please see video below. Here’s to a strong year of environmental victories, and many more to come!
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