Don’t Let the Fiscal Cliff Devastate our Environment

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By Bob Wendelgass, President & CEO During the last major fight on the federal budget, Congress set up a super-committee to attempt to negotiate a package of tax and spending changes to reduce the federal deficit.  In order to provide incentive for the committee, Congress agreed that unless an alternative plan is in place by January 2, 2013, all domestic discretionary funding, including the defense budget, would be cut by 8.2% across the board.  The super-committee was not able to reach an agreement, so as much as $110 billion in cuts are scheduled to take effect in FY 2013.   In addition, the package of tax cuts adopted during the Bush Administration and extended when President Obama took office are scheduled to expire as of December 31, 2012. The combination of these two sets of changes is the “fiscal cliff” that the media is talking about. If all these cuts and tax increases occur as scheduled, economists predict that this would likely throw the economy back into a recession.  The cuts would also devastate many agencies like the EPA and our national parks that have already seen significant cuts over the past several years. Instead of blindly cutting expenses, Congress must take a balanced approach to address the “fiscal cliff” that includes new revenue, revitalizes the economy, and improves our environment.  Our Representatives and Senators can begin to achieve this by:

• Avoiding Further Cuts to Environmental Programs.  Environmental and conservation programs are only 1.25% of the budget, but provide enormous benefits such as cleaner air and water, and healthier communities.  Cutting these programs will cause real harm to our health, our environment and our economy.
• Eliminating Tax Loopholes that Waste Money, Cause Pollution, and Harm Our Health. Ending century-old giveaways to big oil companies would save billions of dollars every year, reduce harmful pollution, and reduce healthcare costs.  Big Oil has made $90 billion in profit so far in 2012 - that’s $304 million a day for this mature industry! Taxpayer subsidies and tax breaks are only enriching already hugely profitable companies.
• Investing in Clean Energy to Revitalize the Economy.  Clean energy is already helping to stabilize the economy by creating jobs and cutting pollution. Tax incentives for wind energy such as the Production Tax Credit (PTC) have helped this industry double in size since 2009. Continued investment in renewable such as wind and solar will strengthen and diversify our economy while reducing harmful air pollution.  Creating jobs and growing the economy is one of the best ways to reduce the deficit over time.

Contact your elected officials and tell them we need a balanced approach that includes new revenue and protects our environment.  Tell them that it’s time to stop subsidizing the huge profits of the big oil companies.  Remind them that additional cuts to environmental programs will take a toll on our environment and our health. Congress has an opportunity to define a new course for our nation’s economy, one that recognizes that a healthy environment and healthy economy go hand in hand.  This means avoiding further spending cuts to environmental programs, ending tax breaks for dirty fuels and investing in clean energy to ensure a stronger economy and healthier future for all Americans.