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Sustainability leaders in the House reinforce call to focus on the climate crisis in 117th Congress

January 26, 2021

Washington D.C. – Today, the leaders of the House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition (SEEC) sent a letter to House Leadership and a letter to President Biden and Vice President Harris to reinforce the urgent need to address the climate crisis. The letters call for a climate-smart recovery that includes both investments and standards to create jobs, increase equity, and protect our planet from climate change for generations to come. The letter to President Biden and Vice President Harris also includes an outline for critical executive actions.

The letters sent today read in part:

"….we know that the country is facing interconnected crises—health, economic, racial, and climate—and like you, we believe we can help address them all by building back better as we recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. This recovery will be our opportunity to justly and equitably rebuild and spur prosperity for decades to come. Central to this mission will be developing a recovery plan that addresses climate change—employing both investments and standards to put us on a path to zero-emissions, while creating millions of high-quality jobs and investing in frontline communities disproportionately burdened by pollution."

Both of these letters were led by SEECVice-Chair Rep A. Donald McEachin, along with SEEC Co-Chairs Reps. Gerry Connolly,Paul Tonko, and Doris Matsui, and fellow SEEC Vice-Chairs Reps. Chellie Pingree, Alan Lowenthal, Mike Quigley, and Matt Cartwright. A signed copy of the letter to House Leadership can be found here, and a signed copy of the letter to the Biden-Harris Administration can be found here.