As the climate crisis intensifies, we need to collectively and aggressively move away from fossil fuels. The Arlington Government, with a whole-of-government approach, can lead Arlington in these efforts. While the County is making some progress on rooftop solar, EV vehicles, and charging infrastructure, the proposed FY2025 budget (starts July 1) does not reflect the urgency of the moment. EcoAction Arlington is urging the County Board to leverage its budget decisions to accelerate County efforts to achieve its carbon neutrality goal.
In particular, EcoAction Arlington calls on the County to:
- Enhance transparency in the budget on the impacts of spending to phase out fossil fuels and lower GHG emissions backed up by publicly-available inventories of energy use and greenhouse gas emissions in County operations and facilities and meaningful metrics to track progress in achieving County goals.
- Fund a “one-stop shop” initiative within the Arlington Initiative to Re-think Energy (AIRE) office, using a portion of the $1 million being allocated for the Climate Action Fund, to provide a range of services, resources, incentives, professional training programs to advance reduction in GHG emissions and building electrification in the private sector.
Make sure that County Board members know you support higher investment in addressing climate change for a livable future for our families and for all of the Arlington Community by sending an email to countyboard@arlingtonva.us before April 20.
You may also speak at the public hearing on the FY-2025 Budget on April 2 at 7:00 pm.
For more details on speaking see Demystifying Speaking at the County Board.
*the mailto link will not work if a default mail app is not defined in your computer.
Sample Letter –
Dear County Board Members,
With the impacts of the climate crisis increasingly visible, now is the time for bold action to put Arlington on a path for phasing out fossil fuels, reducing our greenhouse gas emissions, and ensuring greater resiliency in the face of increasingly extreme weather. As leaders of our Community, I look to you to ensure that the County is following a whole-of-government approach to addressing the climate crisis and that decisions reflected in the budget and the upcoming Capital Improvement Plan will put Arlington on a path to achieving its carbon neutrality goals and meet the more pressing need to reduce GHG emissions by at least 50 percent by 2030.
As you review and amend the proposed FY2025 budget I urge you to:
- Enhance transparency in the budget on the impacts of spending to phase out fossil fuels and lower GHG emissions backed up by publicly-available inventories of energy use and greenhouse gas emissions in County operations and facilities and meaningful metrics to track progress in achieving County goals.
- Fund a “one-stop shop” initiative within the Arlington Initiative to Re-think Energy office to provide a range of services, resources, incentives, professional training programs to advance reduction in GHG emissions and building electrification in the private sector, using a portion of the $1 million being allocated for the Climate Action Fund.
Sincerely
[YOUR NAME]
[YOUR ADDRESS]
