HEC ENVIRONMENTAL

ADVOCATES

all. together. now.

About the Hoosier Environmental Council

OUR MISSION:

The Hoosier Environmental Council is the voice of the people for

the environment in Indiana-the organization with the passion and

the plan to tackle our environmental challenges and help make our

state a healthier, better place to live and do business.

About HEC’s Work

Education

Presentations, e.g. “Greening Your Community” events

Webinars

Annual “Greening the Statehouse” forum

Advocacy

Legislative

Regulatory

Courts

Technical Assistance

Workshops in pollution-afflicted communities

Legal/technical assistance to individuals and groups

How To Get Involved

Grassroots Advocacy 101

Stay informed – HEC Website

www.hecweb.org/bill-watch-2017/

Help Raise Awareness

www.facebook.com/hecweb

www.twitter.com/HEC_ED

www.instagram.com/hoosierenvcouncil

www.youtube.com/user/hecweb1

Engage your elected officials

http://iga.in.gov/legislative/find-legislators/

Make a Bigger Impact

1. Engage legislators at a Third House

meeting

2. Meet your legislators in person

3. Send a personalized email to your

legislator

Greening Your Community House Parties

Who: Anyone interested in

environmental advocacy!

When: Anytime!

Where: Homes of HEC

supporters, restaurants,

churches, rec halls, etc.

all across the state!

Our goal is to develop a statewide network

of environmental advocates to tap

throughout the year.

• Your time commitment as an EA is

entirely up to you!

• Calls to Constituents

• Background research

• Third House Party Attendance

• Visiting your legislators at the

statehouse regarding important bills

• Tabling at Events (Earth Month, other

festivals, for both HEC & Mounds)

• Organizing/Attending GYC Events

BEING AN HEC

ENVIRONMENTAL ADVOCATE

The Legislative Process

The Path of a Bill in the House/Senate

• Bill is introduced in

House or Senate

• Bill is assigned to

committee during first

reading on floor of

house of origin

• Committee chair decides

whether bill is heard in

committee

The Path of a Bill in the House/Senate

• If bill passes committee,

it gets a second reading

on the floor. Can be

amended here and

returned to committee.

• Third reading – roll call

vote to determine if

adopted or defeated by

house of origin.

The Path of a Bill in the House/Senate

• If defeated, the bill is

dead.

• If passed, the bill goes

to the other chamber

(House or Senate) and

through the same

process again.

• If the bill is adopted by the second chamber

then it goes to the governor for a signature or a

veto.

CALLS TO ACTION

Here Come the Bills…

• Indiana’s powerful utility

lobby, with ideological allies in

the legislature, attempted to

eliminate net metering in 2015

with the push to pass HB

1320.

• Due to the enormous

opposition to this bill, Speaker

Brian Bosma wisely chose to

kill HB 1320 by not putting it

to a House vote.

SB 309/HB 1188:

THE ANTI-SOLAR BILLS

SB 309/HB 1188:

THE ANTI-SOLAR BILLS

• SB 309 would generally create

significant financial roadblocks to

those homes seeking to install solar

panels and small wind turbines.

• The key roadblock is to reduce the credits, in a matter of

a few years, that renewable energy customer-generators

receive for selling excess power back to the grid. • In more technical speak, moving from a net metered/“retail rate”

of compensation to an “avoided cost” form of compensation

when a given utility gets 1% of their load from net

metered customer-owned generation.

HB 1001:

THE BIENNIAL BUDGET

• The 2018-2019 budget is expected to authorize about $16

billion a year in state spending from the general fund.

• Another $15 billion a year will be appropriated from

dedicated funds (fees and dedicated taxes) and federal

funding.

• Our state budget provides much-needed funds in caring

for and protecting our environment and the health of all

Hoosiers.

HB 1001:

THE BIENNIAL BUDGET

• Less than 1% of total state general fund appropriations

go to IDEM and DNR, yet both of these agencies have

experienced regular budget cuts over the last 10 years.

• This has left both agencies operating without

adequate staff for inspections, compliance, or

environmental quality monitoring. In addition,

funding for the Indiana Heritage Trust has been cut,

leaving many conservation projects unfunded.

HB 1001:

THE BIENNIAL BUDGET HEC’s Requested Target Funding Levels:

• IDEM & DNR – restore funding to pre-

recession levels

• IDEM: Increase permit fees to a level

that fully funds the cost of permitting

programs. Reestablish and fund an

independent enforcement branch within

IDEM.

• DNR: Replace the Division of

Forestry’s lost dedicated revenue source

so that state forest timber sales are not

relied on for Division funding

HB 1001:

THE BIENNIAL BUDGET

HEC’s Requested Target Funding Levels:

• Clean Water Indiana - $2 M per year

• Helps landowners prevent soil erosion, nutrients

and other runoff that impair Indiana’s waterways by

funding best management practices

• Benjamin Harrison - $3 to $5 M per year

• Has received no meaningful state appropriation

since 2009

• Funded by environmental license plate revenues,

which are declining.

HB 1001:

THE BIENNIAL BUDGET

HEC’s Requested Target Funding Levels:

• Mass Transit Fund - $60 M per year

• With rising operating costs and increased demand,

Indiana’s transit agencies estimate they need at least

$60 million a year from the state just to maintain

current service levels.

• Passenger Rail - $4 M per year

• Will help build this passenger rail service into a

competitive travel choice for people

traveling between Chicago and Indy or

the communities in between.

CALL TO ACTION! PROPOSED

LEGISLATION

INFO & CALL TO ACTION

FOR CITIZENS

HB 1001: Biennial Budget

• Less than 1% of total state general fund appropriations go to IDEM

and DNR, yet both of these agencies have experienced regular budget

cuts over the last 10 years

• Restore funding for IDEM & DNR to pre-recession levels

• Appropriate $3 to $5 million a year for the Harrison Conservation

Trust, ideally from a dedicated, continuing source of revenue.

• Appropriate $2 million a year in addition to the cigarette tax revenue

for Clean Water Indiana

• Increase funding of the Hoosier State train to $5 million a year

TAKE ACTION: Call your legislators!

SB 309/HB 1188:

Distributed Generation

• Will threaten citizens’ ability to choose renewable energy for their

homes.

• Will allow utilities to opt out of connecting private systems to the grid.

• Effectively ends net metering “when the utilities meet a total

subscription rate of 1% of their summer peak load, or by 2027,

whichever comes first.”

TAKE ACTION: Contact members of both the House &

Senate Utility committees and ask them to VOTE NO on SB

309/HB 1188!

QUESTIONS?