BLOGGER TEMPLATES AND TWITTER BACKGROUNDS

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Please Sign GPACE Petition

Help GPACE collect at least 2500 names to take to the State Legislature by Wednesday, February 11th.

full text of this petition:

To the members of the Kansas Legislature:

The Great Plains Alliance for Clean Energy and its members statewide would like you to know we’re ready to rise to the challenges facing us. We’re ready to become a leader in the new energy economy. We’re ready to usher in a new era of economic growth, energy security, and environmental responsibility.

As we all face economic peril and a global energy crisis, we embrace the opportunity to move forward and find solutions using our state’s own resources and the ethic that has defined generations before us.

As Kansans, we welcome the benefits a renewable energy economy can provide: prosperity for our rural communities; jobs and industry for our cities and towns; and clean energy for a new generation of Kansas homes and businesses.

Whereas Kansas has the third greatest wind resource in the nation;

Whereas 75% of the electricity we use in Kansas is generated from coal, all of which is imported from other states;

Whereas Kansas currently has enough electricity production to meet our needs until at least 2023;

Whereas Kansas has abundant natural resources to become energy independent AND provide clean, renewable energy to help the nation become energy independent;

Whereas the cost of fossil fuels like coal will dramatically increase as carbon emissions are regulated;

We, the undersigned Kansas citizens, demand that you, as our elected representatives,

  • Create energy efficiency standards to make the energy we do have go further;
  • Prioritize our state’s own energy resources, like wind, solar, and natural gas;
  • Invest in electricity production that does not produce harmful pollutants that cause health problems;
  • Invest in electricity production that will help stimulate the state’s economy and create long term jobs, investment, and revenue for all of Kansas;
  • Keep intact the rule of law that allows state experts to protect ALL Kansans, and vote against any bill that would sacrifice the health and environment of our children to benefit other states or a single company; and
  • Use no more of our time or tax dollars debating power plants that use Wyoming coal to make electricity for Colorado and Texas residents.

We cannot afford another year of legislative squabbling and political gamesmanship. The stakes are too high, and our opportunities too great.

While you consider changing Kansas laws to benefit citizens and utility providers from other states, we fall farther behind our neighbors who have worked to develop their own energy resources and industry driven by renewable energy.

We in Kansas have all we need to re-power our state right here at home. What’s lacking is your leadership.

In signing this petition, we call upon you to do what’s best for Kansas and to join us in taking meaningful steps towards renewing the Kansas economy.

Thank you.

Friday, February 6, 2009

We Won in the House, Now Tell the Senate to ACT NOW!

From YDA:

Our values and our future are on the line. Millions of young Americans have lost their job, home, savings, and livelihood. We are facing the worst economic crisis since World War II. And if we don't act soon, it will get even worse.

In the midst of this unprecedented crisis, we need unprecedented action. Action that will not only jump start our economy now, but invest in critical programs that will pay off for years, and generations, to come. And there is no time to waste.

Last week, the House of Representatives approved President Obama's American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, a bill designed to help put money in the hands of working Americans to get our economy back on track.

As soon as tonight, the Senate will vote on this important bill and we need your help NOW to pass this crucial legislation.

The bill isn't perfect; responses to a crisis of this scale never are. Critics have focused on a handful of programs that represent less than a half of one percent of the bill's cost. And - irony alert -- Republicans make accusations of wasteful spending without acknowledging that, on their watch, tax cuts for the rich and a mismanaged war created a far greater burden.

This bill has huge implications for young people. From unemployment insurance to investing in renewable energy, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is designed to safeguard our economic future.

The House of Representatives' bill included the new American Opportunity Tax Credit, which offers a tax credit of up to $2,500 for the cost of tuition and related expenses as well as increases the Pell grant maximum and additional funding for work study. Astonishingly, some Senators want to cut this important higher education funding and tax credits. Be sure to urge your Senators to not only pass this bill but to keep these important programs. After all, what could provide more stimulus to our economy now and in the future than helping young people pay for the rising cost of a college education, proven to increase income throughout our lifetime?

The cost of doing too little outweighs the extraordinary cost of getting us out of this economic crisis. Congress must act now to pass this important legislation and get our economy moving again. Urge your Senators to ACT NOW to pass this critical legislation.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act creates good-paying jobs, cuts taxes for working families and makes responsible investments in our future. This plan will help create or save four million jobs, including an entire generation of green jobs that will make public and private investments in renewable energy and make American more energy efficient. And the bill ensures unprecedented transparency, oversight and accountability so that Americans can see not only how their money is being spent, but also the results of their investments.

Learn more about how the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will help your state here. You can also read President Obama's plan and remarks on ARRP.

As young Americans and as Young Democrats we must ACT NOW to urge our Senators to work for our best interest in restoring America's prosperity. This important legislation cannot wait. Our economic future is too important to be yet another political football, we urge bi-partisan support for this crucial bill.

We look forward to keeping you updated on the progress of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act as the legislation progresses through Congress. Please help us broaden our impact by forwarding this email to five friends today!