We need city-wide planning for retrofits to make existing buildings all-electric. This requires collaboration among various city departments, building owners and residents to ensure that adequate electric service is installed in all neighborhoods in a timely manner and that buildings are outfitted with clean electric appliances.
Thanks to the 1% for Climate Equity campaign, we won initial funding for a climate equity hub to begin this process! Retrofits are costly, so we also need to pursue sufficient funding for successful decarbonization, and to ensure lower income residents have access to the transition and are not left with unaffordable costs. We are working together with Supervisor Mar’s office and allied organizations including PODER, DSA, and members of labor unions on a climate ballot measure targeted for the November 2022 election. We anticipate the measure, which taxes owners of large commercial buildings for their greenhouse emissions, will raise $50 million per year. With this money, we can begin to fund the process of decarbonizing existing buildings, while promoting equity and ensuring a just transition in San Francisco. The measure would include electrification pilots complemented with green streets, with a particular focus on environmental justice communities, citywide education and capacity building, and substantial workforce development focused on the building trades. We’ll need all hands on deck to make this a reality, so stay tuned. Sign up for updates! |
Check out our slide deck created and presented by Erika Reinhardt at the BLA Report hearing.
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