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Local Level Actions
Waterfront Redevelopment - AMA Questions
Source: RC
Description: Live video AMA with Pinky Vargas and Michael Shepard on the Bellingham waterfront redevelopment.
Submit questions:
If you’re a member of our Facebook group, you can submit questions in the event announcement (there’s a lively conversation happening there). If not, you can send us an email with your question.
Background: What’s happening with the Bellingham waterfront redevelopment? How can we still impact the outcome? Yeah, we’ve been wondering too, so we asked our friends Pinky Vargas (Bellingham City Council) and Michael Shepard (Port of Bellingham commissioner-elect) to sit down for an Ask Me Anything on possibilities for the waterfront. And we’re going to try video this time!
Drop your questions here, or in the event! We’ll dig them up when it’s time to chat.
Sign Up for Mueller Firing Rapid Response
Source: Move-On.org, RC, and local Indivisible groups
Description: If Robert Mueller is fired, we will join the nation-wide protests. You can sign up through Moveon.org, or if you’d prefer to share your email with the RC (we won’t share) use the form below.
Background:
Donald Trump is publicly considering firing special counsel Robert Mueller, the person leading the Department of Justice investigation of possible illegal actions by Donald Trump and members of his presidential campaign, and the efforts to conceal those activities.
This would be a constitutional crisis for our country. It would demand an immediate and unequivocal response to show that we will not tolerate abuse of power from Donald Trump.
Our response in the minutes and hours following a power grab will dictate what happens next, and whether Congress—the only body with the constitutional power and obligation to rein Trump in from his rampage—will do anything to stand up to him.
That’s why we’re preparing to hold emergency “Nobody is Above the Law” rallies around the country in the event they are needed.
- If Mueller is fired BEFORE 2 P.M. local time —> events will begin @ 5 P.M.local time
- If Mueller is fired AFTER 2 P.M. local time —> events will begin @ noon local time the following day
Sign: Stand with the Puyallup Tribe - No LNG Fracked Gas in the Salish Sea!
Source: Washington Environmental Women’s Alliance
Description: Stand with the Puyallup Water Warriors and Redefine Tacoma by signing their petition to our State government.
Background: The Puyallup tribe call themselves the “salmon people” – if the salmon disappear, they say they will too. But this LNG facility puts all of us in danger. It would create an immediate and unreasonable danger to the thousands of people within three miles of the massive storage tank and would require a steady supply of fracked gas from offsite wells. Communities living near those wells would be exposed to toxins and carcinogens used in the fracking process.
The review process for the LNG project has been marked by conflict of interests, failure to consult with the Puyallup Tribe, and huge failures to accurately quantify the environmental and human impacts of the project.
Whether you live in the facility’s “blast zone,” in Tacoma, or anywhere on this planet, this project will affect you. Stand with the Puyallup Tribe, sign our petition and help us protect our home, Mother Earth, from further destruction.
Contact Information: Sign the petition here.
Commit to Rapid Response Phonebank from Home for the Last Public Meeting on the Proposed Vancouver Oil Terminal!
Source: Sierra Club of Washington
Description: Governor Inslee will have 60 days to stop the largest proposed crude oil terminal in North America once a regulatory agency makes a recommendation. Don Orange, a recently elected port commissioner in Vancouver has promised to cancel the lease with the oil terminal. However, if Inslee approves the project, Don Orange will be unable to cancel the lease. That’s why we need to phonebank to make sure the final public meeting (date is still To Be Announced) is packed with supporters! We can’t let the short notice prevent us from showing how much opposition there is to this project!
Background: That regulatory agency (EFSEC) will announce their recommendation IN PUBLIC, IN VANCOUVER. At that public meeting, we will show up in mass. We will either celebrate or protest their recommendation, and call on Governor Inslee to deny the Vancouver Oil Terminal.
We will get 1 week’s notice of this public meeting. Keep up-to-date by following this Facebook page.
The proposed Vancouver oil terminal would handle a staggering 360,000 barrels of crude oil each day. That’s 42% of the capacity of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline. The terminal would bring 5 more explosive oil trains per day through the Columbia River Gorge. Further, it would sharply increase the oil barge and ship traffic in the Columbia river, risking oil spills that could kill large numbers of our already dwindling salmon population.
Contact Information: Sign up to phonebank at this link.
Suggested Script: Once we know the details, the Sierra Club will provide a script to all who have signed up.
Source: RC
Description: Live video AMA with Pinky Vargas and Michael Shepard on the Bellingham waterfront redevelopment.
Submit questions:
If you’re a member of our Facebook group, you can submit questions in the event announcement (there’s a lively conversation happening there). If not, you can send us an email with your question.
Background: What’s happening with the Bellingham waterfront redevelopment? How can we still impact the outcome? Yeah, we’ve been wondering too, so we asked our friends Pinky Vargas (Bellingham City Council) and Michael Shepard (Port of Bellingham commissioner-elect) to sit down for an Ask Me Anything on possibilities for the waterfront. And we’re going to try video this time!
Drop your questions here, or in the event! We’ll dig them up when it’s time to chat.
Sign Up for Mueller Firing Rapid Response
Source: Move-On.org, RC, and local Indivisible groups
Description: If Robert Mueller is fired, we will join the nation-wide protests. You can sign up through Moveon.org, or if you’d prefer to share your email with the RC (we won’t share) use the form below.
Background:
Donald Trump is publicly considering firing special counsel Robert Mueller, the person leading the Department of Justice investigation of possible illegal actions by Donald Trump and members of his presidential campaign, and the efforts to conceal those activities.
This would be a constitutional crisis for our country. It would demand an immediate and unequivocal response to show that we will not tolerate abuse of power from Donald Trump.
Our response in the minutes and hours following a power grab will dictate what happens next, and whether Congress—the only body with the constitutional power and obligation to rein Trump in from his rampage—will do anything to stand up to him.
That’s why we’re preparing to hold emergency “Nobody is Above the Law” rallies around the country in the event they are needed.
- If Mueller is fired BEFORE 2 P.M. local time —> events will begin @ 5 P.M.local time
- If Mueller is fired AFTER 2 P.M. local time —> events will begin @ noon local time the following day
Sign: Stand with the Puyallup Tribe - No LNG Fracked Gas in the Salish Sea!
Source: Washington Environmental Women’s Alliance
Description: Stand with the Puyallup Water Warriors and Redefine Tacoma by signing their petition to our State government.
Background: The Puyallup tribe call themselves the “salmon people” – if the salmon disappear, they say they will too. But this LNG facility puts all of us in danger. It would create an immediate and unreasonable danger to the thousands of people within three miles of the massive storage tank and would require a steady supply of fracked gas from offsite wells. Communities living near those wells would be exposed to toxins and carcinogens used in the fracking process.
The review process for the LNG project has been marked by conflict of interests, failure to consult with the Puyallup Tribe, and huge failures to accurately quantify the environmental and human impacts of the project.
Whether you live in the facility’s “blast zone,” in Tacoma, or anywhere on this planet, this project will affect you. Stand with the Puyallup Tribe, sign our petition and help us protect our home, Mother Earth, from further destruction.
Contact Information: Sign the petition here.
Commit to Rapid Response Phonebank from Home for the Last Public Meeting on the Proposed Vancouver Oil Terminal!
Source: Sierra Club of Washington
Description: Governor Inslee will have 60 days to stop the largest proposed crude oil terminal in North America once a regulatory agency makes a recommendation. Don Orange, a recently elected port commissioner in Vancouver has promised to cancel the lease with the oil terminal. However, if Inslee approves the project, Don Orange will be unable to cancel the lease. That’s why we need to phonebank to make sure the final public meeting (date is still To Be Announced) is packed with supporters! We can’t let the short notice prevent us from showing how much opposition there is to this project!
Background: That regulatory agency (EFSEC) will announce their recommendation IN PUBLIC, IN VANCOUVER. At that public meeting, we will show up in mass. We will either celebrate or protest their recommendation, and call on Governor Inslee to deny the Vancouver Oil Terminal.
We will get 1 week’s notice of this public meeting. Keep up-to-date by following this Facebook page.
The proposed Vancouver oil terminal would handle a staggering 360,000 barrels of crude oil each day. That’s 42% of the capacity of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline. The terminal would bring 5 more explosive oil trains per day through the Columbia River Gorge. Further, it would sharply increase the oil barge and ship traffic in the Columbia river, risking oil spills that could kill large numbers of our already dwindling salmon population.
Contact Information: Sign up to phonebank at this link.
Suggested Script: Once we know the details, the Sierra Club will provide a script to all who have signed up.
Source: Washington Environmental Women’s Alliance
Description: Stand with the Puyallup Water Warriors and Redefine Tacoma by signing their petition to our State government.
Background: The Puyallup tribe call themselves the “salmon people” – if the salmon disappear, they say they will too. But this LNG facility puts all of us in danger. It would create an immediate and unreasonable danger to the thousands of people within three miles of the massive storage tank and would require a steady supply of fracked gas from offsite wells. Communities living near those wells would be exposed to toxins and carcinogens used in the fracking process.
The review process for the LNG project has been marked by conflict of interests, failure to consult with the Puyallup Tribe, and huge failures to accurately quantify the environmental and human impacts of the project.
Whether you live in the facility’s “blast zone,” in Tacoma, or anywhere on this planet, this project will affect you. Stand with the Puyallup Tribe, sign our petition and help us protect our home, Mother Earth, from further destruction.
Contact Information: Sign the petition here.
Commit to Rapid Response Phonebank from Home for the Last Public Meeting on the Proposed Vancouver Oil Terminal!
Source: Sierra Club of Washington
Description: Governor Inslee will have 60 days to stop the largest proposed crude oil terminal in North America once a regulatory agency makes a recommendation. Don Orange, a recently elected port commissioner in Vancouver has promised to cancel the lease with the oil terminal. However, if Inslee approves the project, Don Orange will be unable to cancel the lease. That’s why we need to phonebank to make sure the final public meeting (date is still To Be Announced) is packed with supporters! We can’t let the short notice prevent us from showing how much opposition there is to this project!
Background: That regulatory agency (EFSEC) will announce their recommendation IN PUBLIC, IN VANCOUVER. At that public meeting, we will show up in mass. We will either celebrate or protest their recommendation, and call on Governor Inslee to deny the Vancouver Oil Terminal.
We will get 1 week’s notice of this public meeting. Keep up-to-date by following this Facebook page.
The proposed Vancouver oil terminal would handle a staggering 360,000 barrels of crude oil each day. That’s 42% of the capacity of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline. The terminal would bring 5 more explosive oil trains per day through the Columbia River Gorge. Further, it would sharply increase the oil barge and ship traffic in the Columbia river, risking oil spills that could kill large numbers of our already dwindling salmon population.
Contact Information: Sign up to phonebank at this link.
Suggested Script: Once we know the details, the Sierra Club will provide a script to all who have signed up.
National Level Actions / Other
Call Murray and Cantwell - Withhold Consent to Defeat #TrumpTaxScam
Source: Indivisible Guide
Description: Call Senators Murray and Cantrell and ask them to to “withhold consent” to defeat the #TrumpTaxScam
Background: Why are we only calling our own senators? It’s the Indivisible way! Indivisible strongly discourages calling MoCs other than your own. This is for three reasons: MoCs and their staff won’t take down messages from people who aren’t their constituents; it feeds into the narrative of ‘outside agitators,’ which we know is not the case in our movement; and it takes precious time and energy away that could be put towards more strategic activism. It’s also explicitly in the Guide to avoid doing this.
Contact Information:
Senator Patty Murray -WA (206) 553-5545, DC (202) 224-2621
Senator Maria Cantwell – WA (206) 220-6400, DC (202) 224-3441
Suggested Script:
Caller: Hello! My name is [___] and I’m calling from [part of state]. I’m calling to let [Congressman / Senator __] know that I strongly oppose the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. This tax bill is a scam that will give massive cuts to the wealthy, paid for by stripping tens of thousands of people in [state] of their health care and raising taxes on middle-class families. Will the Senator commit to withholding consent on votes in the Senate so that we have time to mobilize against this bill?]
Staffer: I haven’t talked to the Senator about that, but I’ll pass your thoughts along.
Caller: That’s what I expect out of the Senator. It’s not enough just to vote no, he/she needs to actively work to slow down the Trump Tax Scam and expose it for the scam it is. Democrats started withholding consent during the health care fight—and it worked. That’s what I want to see again here. Please take down my info so you can let me know what he/she is doing to slow down the Trump Tax Scam.
Additional Information:
Forbes: GOP Tax Bill is the End of All Economic Sanity in Washington
#TrumpTaxScam - Call Progressives in Other States
Source: Indivisible Guide
Description:
Use Indivisible Guide’s calling tool to call progressive voters in states with a republican senator and ask them to talk to their senator. If they agree, you can patch them through!
Here’s how it works:
- Sign up at this link to make phone calls from Indivisible’s peer-to-peer dialing tool. You’ll get an email confirmation with a login, password, and URL to sign into the Indivisible system. Once signed in, you can start making calls immediately—and Indivisible will give you a script to make it as easy as possible!
- Next, you’ll call a voter in a key state with a swing Republican Senator. These folks are your friends—they attended the Women’s March, they’re standing up to pass a #CleanDREAM, and/or fight for progressive causes.
- You explain how they have power now. You’ll remind them why the continued fight against the Trump Tax Scam is so important—and why they have particular power in this moment.
- You ask them to use their power. You’ll ask them to call their senator in opposition to the bill, and to share their own reasons for opposing it.
- The tool connects them to their Senator’s office. The call tool will allow you to automatically patch them through to the Senators’ district offices.
It’s super easy: 2,233 Indivisible volunteers across the country dialed 320,552 Calls to Kill TrumpCare tool to encourage constituents in Alaska, Arizona, Maine, and Colorado to call their Republican senators and tell them to vote no on Graham-Cassidy. And we won. We can win this time, too, with your help.
Background:
Forbes: GOP Tax Bill is the End of All Economic Sanity in Washington
Comment: Reject National Park Service Fee Hike
Source: National Parks Conservation Association, Sierra Club
Description: The Trump administration has proposed dramatic fee increases at 17 of the country’s most popular national parks during peak seasons, including Mount Rainier, Olympic, Denali, Glacier, Yosemite, Joshua Tree, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Grand Canyon and Canyonlands National Parks. Entrance fees could jump from $25 to $70, and the plan would take effect in 2018. This fee hike would reduce access to too many families at the same time the administration continues to work to increase access to the fossil fuel industry. Comment by 11/23/17 to oppose the fee hike.
Background: The administration claims this fee hike will address the agency’s $11.3 billion maintenance backlog, but Interior Secretary Zinke estimates that the new fees could raise around $70 million annually. That’s just a tiny fraction of the maintenance backlog. Congress already has a better solution at its fingertips: the National Park Service Legacy Act (S. 751). The Act would establish a dedicated park maintenance fund to invest a more substantial amount toward the Park Service repair backlog. This investment, plus a responsible current federal budget, would make real progress toward restoring and improving parks for the future — without creating hurdles that could keep people out of their public lands.
Contact Information: Access the comment form here.
Suggested Script:
I strongly oppose the proposal to increase fees to the 17 most popular national parks during peak season. It’s increasingly clear that time outside is not just a luxury, but central to the health and well-being of our communities. This dramatic increase will prohibit many families from accessing our most beautiful natural places. This proposal is unjust and unacceptable, and should be dropped immediately. The fact that the Trump administration is limiting access to everyday people while opening up our public lands to corporate polluters is a blatant giveaway to fossil fuel allies and a betrayal of the American people. I stand with thousands of others in opposition to this proposed park fee increase.
It is also very concerning that congressional leadership aims to cut the Department of Interior’s budget, while it’s clear we need more investment in our parks and its infrastructure. The solution to the funding shortfall should fall to Congress, and cannot and should not be shouldered by its visitors. The National Park Service Legacy Act (S. 751) that is pending in Congress addresses the National Park Service maintenance backlog, and it deserves the Department of the Interior’s support. This bipartisan legislation would provide a more substantial — and sustainable — investment in our parks.
Thank you for considering my comments.
Additional Information:
National Park Service Proposes Targeted Fee Increases at Parks to Address Maintenance Backlog
Outside Magazine: DOI Backtracks on Addressing Inequality in Our Parks
Sign: Investigate the EPA's removal of independent scientists from advisory boards
Source: CREDO Action
Description:
Background: As the head of Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Scott Pruitt is shameless in his quest to get rid of environmental protections. In the latest assault on his own agency’s mission, Pruitt has quietly moved to replace independent scientists on EPA advisory boards with fossil fuel and chemical industry representatives.
Tell the comptroller general of the United States: Investigate the EPA’s removal of government-funded scientists from advisory boards.
Pruitt has banned scientists who have received EPA grants from serving on advisory boards, claiming that he is eliminating conflicts of interest. In fact, his policy does the opposite. Pruitt is getting rid of academic experts – who rely on outside research funding – and replacing them with corporate-funded scientists.
Because research grants often go to the top scientists in a given field, Pruitt’s policy systematically excludes many of the most qualified scientists from advising the EPA.
Contact Information: Sign the petition by clicking here.
Suggested Script:
Additional Information:
- Juliet Eilperin, “EPA’s new science advisers add more industry experts, conservatives to the mix,” The Washington Post, Nov. 4, 2017.
- Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse et al., “Letter to the Honorable Gene L. Dodaro, Comptroller General of the United States,” Nov. 9, 2017.
Source: Indivisible Guide
Description: Call Senators Murray and Cantrell and ask them to to “withhold consent” to defeat the #TrumpTaxScam
Background: Why are we only calling our own senators? It’s the Indivisible way! Indivisible strongly discourages calling MoCs other than your own. This is for three reasons: MoCs and their staff won’t take down messages from people who aren’t their constituents; it feeds into the narrative of ‘outside agitators,’ which we know is not the case in our movement; and it takes precious time and energy away that could be put towards more strategic activism. It’s also explicitly in the Guide to avoid doing this.
Contact Information:
Senator Patty Murray -WA (206) 553-5545, DC (202) 224-2621
Senator Maria Cantwell – WA (206) 220-6400, DC (202) 224-3441
Suggested Script:
Caller: Hello! My name is [___] and I’m calling from [part of state]. I’m calling to let [Congressman / Senator __] know that I strongly oppose the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. This tax bill is a scam that will give massive cuts to the wealthy, paid for by stripping tens of thousands of people in [state] of their health care and raising taxes on middle-class families. Will the Senator commit to withholding consent on votes in the Senate so that we have time to mobilize against this bill?]
Staffer: I haven’t talked to the Senator about that, but I’ll pass your thoughts along.
Caller: That’s what I expect out of the Senator. It’s not enough just to vote no, he/she needs to actively work to slow down the Trump Tax Scam and expose it for the scam it is. Democrats started withholding consent during the health care fight—and it worked. That’s what I want to see again here. Please take down my info so you can let me know what he/she is doing to slow down the Trump Tax Scam.
Additional Information:
Forbes: GOP Tax Bill is the End of All Economic Sanity in Washington
#TrumpTaxScam - Call Progressives in Other States
Source: Indivisible Guide
Description:
Use Indivisible Guide’s calling tool to call progressive voters in states with a republican senator and ask them to talk to their senator. If they agree, you can patch them through!
Here’s how it works:
- Sign up at this link to make phone calls from Indivisible’s peer-to-peer dialing tool. You’ll get an email confirmation with a login, password, and URL to sign into the Indivisible system. Once signed in, you can start making calls immediately—and Indivisible will give you a script to make it as easy as possible!
- Next, you’ll call a voter in a key state with a swing Republican Senator. These folks are your friends—they attended the Women’s March, they’re standing up to pass a #CleanDREAM, and/or fight for progressive causes.
- You explain how they have power now. You’ll remind them why the continued fight against the Trump Tax Scam is so important—and why they have particular power in this moment.
- You ask them to use their power. You’ll ask them to call their senator in opposition to the bill, and to share their own reasons for opposing it.
- The tool connects them to their Senator’s office. The call tool will allow you to automatically patch them through to the Senators’ district offices.
It’s super easy: 2,233 Indivisible volunteers across the country dialed 320,552 Calls to Kill TrumpCare tool to encourage constituents in Alaska, Arizona, Maine, and Colorado to call their Republican senators and tell them to vote no on Graham-Cassidy. And we won. We can win this time, too, with your help.
Background:
Forbes: GOP Tax Bill is the End of All Economic Sanity in Washington
Comment: Reject National Park Service Fee Hike
Source: National Parks Conservation Association, Sierra Club
Description: The Trump administration has proposed dramatic fee increases at 17 of the country’s most popular national parks during peak seasons, including Mount Rainier, Olympic, Denali, Glacier, Yosemite, Joshua Tree, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Grand Canyon and Canyonlands National Parks. Entrance fees could jump from $25 to $70, and the plan would take effect in 2018. This fee hike would reduce access to too many families at the same time the administration continues to work to increase access to the fossil fuel industry. Comment by 11/23/17 to oppose the fee hike.
Background: The administration claims this fee hike will address the agency’s $11.3 billion maintenance backlog, but Interior Secretary Zinke estimates that the new fees could raise around $70 million annually. That’s just a tiny fraction of the maintenance backlog. Congress already has a better solution at its fingertips: the National Park Service Legacy Act (S. 751). The Act would establish a dedicated park maintenance fund to invest a more substantial amount toward the Park Service repair backlog. This investment, plus a responsible current federal budget, would make real progress toward restoring and improving parks for the future — without creating hurdles that could keep people out of their public lands.
Contact Information: Access the comment form here.
Suggested Script:
I strongly oppose the proposal to increase fees to the 17 most popular national parks during peak season. It’s increasingly clear that time outside is not just a luxury, but central to the health and well-being of our communities. This dramatic increase will prohibit many families from accessing our most beautiful natural places. This proposal is unjust and unacceptable, and should be dropped immediately. The fact that the Trump administration is limiting access to everyday people while opening up our public lands to corporate polluters is a blatant giveaway to fossil fuel allies and a betrayal of the American people. I stand with thousands of others in opposition to this proposed park fee increase.
It is also very concerning that congressional leadership aims to cut the Department of Interior’s budget, while it’s clear we need more investment in our parks and its infrastructure. The solution to the funding shortfall should fall to Congress, and cannot and should not be shouldered by its visitors. The National Park Service Legacy Act (S. 751) that is pending in Congress addresses the National Park Service maintenance backlog, and it deserves the Department of the Interior’s support. This bipartisan legislation would provide a more substantial — and sustainable — investment in our parks.
Thank you for considering my comments.
Additional Information:
National Park Service Proposes Targeted Fee Increases at Parks to Address Maintenance Backlog
Outside Magazine: DOI Backtracks on Addressing Inequality in Our Parks
Sign: Investigate the EPA's removal of independent scientists from advisory boards
Source: CREDO Action
Description:
Background: As the head of Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Scott Pruitt is shameless in his quest to get rid of environmental protections. In the latest assault on his own agency’s mission, Pruitt has quietly moved to replace independent scientists on EPA advisory boards with fossil fuel and chemical industry representatives.
Tell the comptroller general of the United States: Investigate the EPA’s removal of government-funded scientists from advisory boards.
Pruitt has banned scientists who have received EPA grants from serving on advisory boards, claiming that he is eliminating conflicts of interest. In fact, his policy does the opposite. Pruitt is getting rid of academic experts – who rely on outside research funding – and replacing them with corporate-funded scientists.
Because research grants often go to the top scientists in a given field, Pruitt’s policy systematically excludes many of the most qualified scientists from advising the EPA.
Contact Information: Sign the petition by clicking here.
Suggested Script:
Additional Information:
- Juliet Eilperin, “EPA’s new science advisers add more industry experts, conservatives to the mix,” The Washington Post, Nov. 4, 2017.
- Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse et al., “Letter to the Honorable Gene L. Dodaro, Comptroller General of the United States,” Nov. 9, 2017.
Source: National Parks Conservation Association, Sierra Club
Description: The Trump administration has proposed dramatic fee increases at 17 of the country’s most popular national parks during peak seasons, including Mount Rainier, Olympic, Denali, Glacier, Yosemite, Joshua Tree, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Grand Canyon and Canyonlands National Parks. Entrance fees could jump from $25 to $70, and the plan would take effect in 2018. This fee hike would reduce access to too many families at the same time the administration continues to work to increase access to the fossil fuel industry. Comment by 11/23/17 to oppose the fee hike.
Background: The administration claims this fee hike will address the agency’s $11.3 billion maintenance backlog, but Interior Secretary Zinke estimates that the new fees could raise around $70 million annually. That’s just a tiny fraction of the maintenance backlog. Congress already has a better solution at its fingertips: the National Park Service Legacy Act (S. 751). The Act would establish a dedicated park maintenance fund to invest a more substantial amount toward the Park Service repair backlog. This investment, plus a responsible current federal budget, would make real progress toward restoring and improving parks for the future — without creating hurdles that could keep people out of their public lands.
Contact Information: Access the comment form here.
Suggested Script:
I strongly oppose the proposal to increase fees to the 17 most popular national parks during peak season. It’s increasingly clear that time outside is not just a luxury, but central to the health and well-being of our communities. This dramatic increase will prohibit many families from accessing our most beautiful natural places. This proposal is unjust and unacceptable, and should be dropped immediately. The fact that the Trump administration is limiting access to everyday people while opening up our public lands to corporate polluters is a blatant giveaway to fossil fuel allies and a betrayal of the American people. I stand with thousands of others in opposition to this proposed park fee increase.
It is also very concerning that congressional leadership aims to cut the Department of Interior’s budget, while it’s clear we need more investment in our parks and its infrastructure. The solution to the funding shortfall should fall to Congress, and cannot and should not be shouldered by its visitors. The National Park Service Legacy Act (S. 751) that is pending in Congress addresses the National Park Service maintenance backlog, and it deserves the Department of the Interior’s support. This bipartisan legislation would provide a more substantial — and sustainable — investment in our parks.
Thank you for considering my comments.
Additional Information:
National Park Service Proposes Targeted Fee Increases at Parks to Address Maintenance Backlog
Outside Magazine: DOI Backtracks on Addressing Inequality in Our Parks
Sign: Investigate the EPA's removal of independent scientists from advisory boards
Source: CREDO Action
Description:
Background: As the head of Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Scott Pruitt is shameless in his quest to get rid of environmental protections. In the latest assault on his own agency’s mission, Pruitt has quietly moved to replace independent scientists on EPA advisory boards with fossil fuel and chemical industry representatives.
Tell the comptroller general of the United States: Investigate the EPA’s removal of government-funded scientists from advisory boards.
Pruitt has banned scientists who have received EPA grants from serving on advisory boards, claiming that he is eliminating conflicts of interest. In fact, his policy does the opposite. Pruitt is getting rid of academic experts – who rely on outside research funding – and replacing them with corporate-funded scientists.
Because research grants often go to the top scientists in a given field, Pruitt’s policy systematically excludes many of the most qualified scientists from advising the EPA.
Contact Information: Sign the petition by clicking here.
Suggested Script:
Additional Information:
- Juliet Eilperin, “EPA’s new science advisers add more industry experts, conservatives to the mix,” The Washington Post, Nov. 4, 2017.
- Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse et al., “Letter to the Honorable Gene L. Dodaro, Comptroller General of the United States,” Nov. 9, 2017.
From the Calendar
Link to the Riveters Collective Calendar
Every Monday: Attend a vigil hosted by Racial Justice Coalition and Keep Bellingham Families Working. A vigil will be held from 11:30a.m.-1:30p.m. in front of the Whatcom County Courthouse or from 5:00-6:00p.m. at the WTA downtown bus station. Support undocumented and immigrant families to live in safety and dignity in our community. Bring your friends and co-workers!