THIS IS IT! T-48 hours: Stop the Madness Defend CEQA With just 48 hours remaining in the legislative session and budget negotiations looming, special interests are pressing lawmakers to pass legislation that would dismantle our State's premier environmental law, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). As many of you may remember, last year legislators gave a new stadium in the City of Industry a massive CEQA exemption. As we write this, this same end of session, end run around CEQA is happening again. A whole host of measures will be considered in these final hours including exemptions for Big Oil, Walmart and other major development projects. The Walmart exemption bill (AB 1581) would allow big box stores to move into a vacated store and start doing business without any environmental review. Individuals and organizations concerned about the public's health and well-being, the environment and good government must push back on this dangerous wave of attacks on CEQA. We must defend the rights of ordinary Californians to safeguard their families and neighborhoods, and protect their communities from environmental hazards. If passed, the Walmart exemption (AB 1581) would eliminate the ability of local residents to participate in decision-making about how their neighborhoods should grow. This and other egregious bills are being introduced as we write this. Please take action now to stop these attacks and ensure communities are not shut out of the decision making process. 2 things you need to do now: Call your state representatives' Capitol office and urge them to oppose AB 1581 and every last minute CEQA play. Be sure to call the Capitol office. Let them know why CEQA is important to the health & well-being of their constituents; if possible, mention a development in their district that was improved by CEQA. (Sample talking points are also provided below.) To find the name & contact information for your Assembly member and Senator go to the following website; search by address or zip code. http://www.legislature.ca.gov/legislators_and_districts/legislators/your_legislator.html. Forward this alert and educate and mobilize your friends, family and organizations to take action. Distribute this action alert to your network. Individuals and groups that are concerned about your community's well being. For more information or to receive regular updates about this campaign contact: Traci Sheehan with the Planning and Conservation League at [email protected] or 916-313-4511. Sample Talking Points in Opposition to CEQA Exemption Bills I urge you to oppose the Walmart CEQA Exemption Bill - AB 1581 and all the other last minute plays on CEQA. This bill, and other proposals like it, weaken CEQA and will undermine the ability of my community to participate in decisions that determine how our neighborhoods will grow. These bills would allow a select number of projects to avoid public scrutiny. These bills erode California's legacy of environmental protection. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ --------------------------------------------------------------------------- LAAMN: Los Angeles Alternative Media Network --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Unsubscribe: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subscribe: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Digest: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Help: <mailto:[email protected]?subject=laamn> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Post: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Archive1: <http://www.egroups.com/messages/laamn> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Archive2: <http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/laamn/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/laamn/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: [email protected] [email protected] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [email protected] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
