Mesa City Councilmember Francisco Heredia represents District 3.
Mesa is the third largest city in Arizona with a diverse population of over 518,000 people. As this number increases, it is urgent that we prioritize solutions to curb the impacts of the climate crisis so that we can build the safety and resilience our communities deserve.
The City of Mesa is taking action to make sustainable improvements for our residents, and have released a Climate Action Plan to protect and conserve Mesa’s environment and natural resources.. To bolster this effort, we need to make investments that tackle the climate crisis, and have tangible benefits for Arizonans. Fortunately, Congress is working on a bill, the Build Back Better Act, that would make a difference for our city and state that will mitigate wildfires and protect forests and watersheds, address drought impacts and land and water issues, and act boldly on the climate crisis, and we need Senator Kelly and Senator Sinema to support it.
Read More
The Build Back Better Act passed the House of Representatives with bold investments to Create Jobs, Restore Public Lands, Act on Climate, and Reform the Federal Gas Leasing Program
(Arizona/Washington, DC) -- A group of Hispanic and Hispanic-serving community and elected leaders, including Hispanics Enjoying Camping Hunting and the Outdoors (HECHO), sent a letter to Members of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources urging them to pass the Build Back Better Act with nature-based investments that will restore natural systems, protect communities against climate-fueled disasters, create millions of jobs, and reform the federal oil and gas leasing program.
Read More
The report follows a comprehensive review of federal leasing practices and priorities and highlights how the oil and gas industry has benefitted at the expense of taxpayers, wildlife, and public lands.
Today the Department of the Interior (DOI) released a long-awaited report on the state of the federal oil and gas leasing program and includes a path forward to bring the program into the 21st century so that it works for everybody.
“For too long, our oil and gas leasing program has been utilizing outdated practices that have long-term implications for the health, stewardship, and economics of our public lands. We are excited to see that the DOI has put forward recommendations that address long-standing problems with an antiquated leasing program. Congress should use this report as a guide for reforming the fiscal policies of federal oil and gas leasing program as part of the Build Back Better Act,” said Camilla Simon, Executive Director, Hispanics Enjoying Camping, Hunting, and the Outdoors (HECHO).
Read More
When I was 10 years old, I witnessed my grandfather, Cesar Chavez, fasting to demand a ban for pesticide use on table grapes. The pesticides poisoned the soil and posed serious health impacts to the farmworkers who tended the land.
At this early age it ignited in me a passion to ensure that our communities and our environment are protected and have access to clean air and fresh water.
Today this connection has led me to advocate for legislation that will mitigate the impacts of the climate crisis that my community is experiencing first hand. From frequent heavy pollution days and increasing concern over access to clean drinking water, it’s high time for comprehensive legislation that will address these important issues.
Read More
Overview
Passed by bipartisan votes in both the Senate (69-30) and the House (228-206), and signed into law on Monday, November 15, 2021, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) is a transformative investment. It covers funding authorizations for our nation’s roads, bridges, highways, drinking and clean water infrastructure, internet access, electrical grid and transmission system, and wildlife crossing and natural infrastructure projects. It also includes notable provisions to remediate and reclaim abandoned coal mines, orphaned oil and gas wells, and Superfund sites, improve forest conditions to lessen the impacts of wildfires and better protect communities, and restore ecosystems on public and private land.
The IIJA is a bipartisan $1.2 trillion legislative package, with $650 billion of that amount paid for by existing trust funds that are automatically raised through existing taxes. That means that $550 billion is new infrastructure spending over 5 years, which includes $47 billion for new climate resilience initiatives—the largest federal investment yet to address the climate crisis.
Read More
Washington D.C. -- President Biden has signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act into law, the largest federal investment focusing on tackling the climate crisis, setting a precedent for the protection of our communities, health, and landscapes.
Addressing the climate crisis by creating jobs, advancing environmental justice, and highlighting outdoor economies, it will enhance our existing infrastructure making it resilient against the impacts of climate change and extreme weather events with key investments to protect against droughts, heat, floods, and wildfires. Water systems, roads, bridges, power infrastructure, public transit, and railway systems will receive much-needed updates to create safe, efficient, and climate-friendly solutions. It’ll tackle legacy pollution, build a national network of electric vehicle chargers, and deploy cutting-edge energy technology to achieve a zero-emissions future.
Read More
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper introduced the Competitive Onshore Mineral Policy via Eliminating Taxpayer-Enabled Speculation (COMPETES) Act, legislation to prevent oil and gas companies from leasing taxpayer-owned public lands for next to nothing. Forty percent of acres leased for drilling go through this non-competitive process.
Under current law, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is required to offer up federal lands that fail to attract bidders in oil and gas leasing auctions through a non-competitive leasing process for only $1.50 per acre, far less than the usual rate at auction. This leads to abuse by allowing companies to nominate lands for auction with no intention of bidding on them, only to acquire them later at minimal cost.
Read More
This piece originally appeared as an op-ed in the Daily Camera on July 1, 2021.
By Bianca McGrath-Martinez, HECHO Program Manager | 07/01/2021 at 11:32 a.m.
Our communities rely on public lands for clean air and water, and for opportunities to connect with the land. Our identities are intertwined with the health of our public lands, and when properly stewarded, we are the beneficiaries. But a growing crisis of abandoned oil and gas wells on federal public lands threatens our clean air and water.
Read More
June 22, 2021 – U.S. Senator Michael Bennet introduced the Oil and Gas Bonding Reform and Orphaned Well Remediation Act today, setting a precedent in holding oil and gas companies accountable in their operation of our nation’s public lands. The bill calls for a two-step approach in addressing the burdensome and broken system that has been in place for the decades and has impacted local governments and taxpayers alike.
Read More
On January 27, the Biden administration passed an executive order to tackle the climate crisis that included a pause on new oil and gas leasing. The pause was put in place to allow the Department of the Interior the opportunity to assess what lands are leased and why, as well as whether taxpayers are properly benefitting from oil and gas that are extracted from our public lands. The pause did not impact existing operations or leases, and did not apply to private lands.
Read More
May 27, 2021 -- Congresswoman Teresa Leger Fernández’s Orphaned Well Cleanup and Jobs Act of 2021 is a dynamic bill that would stimulate rural economies, create jobs, and cut down on pollution. The bill would help clean up state, private, public, and Tribal lands while also combatting the climate crisis. Passing out of the House Natural Resources Committee this week, it now heads to the House floor.
Read More