| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 73.03 |
| Liaison | Mark Lichtenstein |
| Submission Date | June 7, 2016 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry
EN-14: Participation in Public Policy
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.33 / 2.00 |
Maureen
Fellows Director of Government Relations and Institutional Planning Governmental Relations and Institutional Planning |
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Does the institution advocate for public policies that support campus sustainability or that otherwise advance sustainability at the municipal/local level?:
No
A brief description of how the institution engages in public policy advocacy for sustainability at the municipal/local level, including the issues, legislation, and ordinances for or against which the institution has advocated:
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Does the institution advocate for public policies that support campus sustainability or that otherwise advance sustainability at the state/provincial/regional level?:
Yes
A brief description of how the institution engages in public policy advocacy for sustainability at the state/provincial/regional level, including the issues, legislation, and ordinances for or against which the institution has advocated:
SUNY-ESF directly and successfully advocated with the New York congressional delegation and the U.S. House Appropriations
Committee, Energy & Water Development Subcommittee and the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee, Energy & Water Development Subcommittee in support of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, (ARRA 2009/Pub.L. 111-5) and commonly referred to as "The Stimulus or The Recovery Act," to include and fund Green Job Training at $500 million for worker training and placement projects that prepare workers for careers in energy efficiency and renewable energy as authorized in the Green Jobs Act of 2007. SUNY-ESF also devoted significant time and attention to Extension of Production Tax Credit (PTC) for electricity from biomass and other renewable sources and making investment tax credits available to biomass facilities and all other renewable sources. Finally, SUNY-ESF played a direct and pivotal role in the establishment of the Renewable Energy Grant Program in Lieu of Tax Credits.
Does the institution advocate for public policies that support campus sustainability or that otherwise advance sustainability at the national level?:
Yes
A brief description of how the institution engages in public policy advocacy for sustainability at the national level, including the issues, legislation, and ordinances for or against which the institution has advocated:
SUNY-ESF directly and successfully advocated with the New York congressional delegation and the U.S. House Energy & Commerce Committee and the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources in support of revised biomass definition, which was more balanced and unified business and environmental concerns during the Waxman-Markey "American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009" (HR 2454) biomass definition debate. SUNY-ESF academic and scientific leadership strongly advocated against one-sided and narrowly-drawn definitions of renewable biomass as proposed in HR 2454; as did almost all of the national biomass community. SUNY-ESF said the bill’s proposed definition was not in the best interests of the New York-Northeastern forest community nor the entire national forest community. The SUNY-ESF academic and scientific leadership reiterated that woody biomass is a substantial, CO2-neutral renewable resource that can be used as a fuel for a variety of sustainable and environmentally sound energy applications. They urged congressional leadership to replace the HR 2454 definition with the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (PL 109-58) definition as the “more perfect definition.” As a more perfect definition, the definition of biomass in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (HR 6-PL 109-58) remains the clearest and most concise definition in public law. SUNY-ESF also proposed, as an alternative starting point, the proposed definition, in a bill to amend the Clean Air Act, "The Renewable Fuel Standard Improvement Act." HR-2409.
Does the institution advocate for public policies that support campus sustainability or that otherwise advance sustainability at the international level?:
No
A brief description of how the institution engages in public policy advocacy for sustainability at the international level, including the issues, legislation, and ordinances for or against which the institution has advocated:
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Optional Fields
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None
A brief description of political donations the institution made during the previous three years (if applicable):
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The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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