Dear Crotonites,
It gives me great pleasure to share with you that at the Village Board meeting on October 3, 2022, the Board voted unanimously to adopt a Resolution in support of Statewide Ballot Proposal 1: Clean Water, Clean Air, Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act of 2022. The Act was passed by the New York State Legislature as part of the 2022-2023 New York State Budget, and will appear on the November 8, 2022 New York State General Election Ballot for voter approval.
The Clean Water, Clean Air, Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act would authorize the four billion and two hundred million dollars of bonds to finance critical environmental restoration, clean water, and infrastructure projects across New York State. The Act will provide funding for a variety of environmental initiatives, among them protecting our local waterways from pollution and modernizing water infrastructure to safeguard clean water, reduce flooding, and reduce lead exposure and other health threats. Funding will also go towards building green roofs, upgrading cooling centers, upgrading transportation and stormwater infrastructure, restoring natural resources, growing urban forests, protecting open space and farmland, upgrading facilities at state and local parks and preserves, and creating new outdoor recreational areas, thereby protecting wildlife habitat and providing more people with access to nature. All of these initiatives will reduce the pollution that causes climate change, and protect the State’s vulnerability to extreme weather, characterized by rising temperatures, stronger and more frequent storms and storm surges that put people, properties and public assets at risk. In addition, these funded initiatives will support more than 84,000 family-sustaining jobs for New Yorkers: green jobs, with strong labor provisions . The Environmental Bond Act also stipulates that at least 35%, with a goal of 40% of the measure’s funding will go towards addressing pollution, public health threats and other hazardous conditions in disadvantaged communities across the State.
For all these reasons, the Village Board is pleased to support the Clean Water, Clear Air, Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act, and hope you will too when it appears on the ballot for public approval on Election Day, November 8th!
Sincerely, Sherry Horowitz, Trustee, Croton Village Board