Latest Press Releases
February 19, 2021
Elected Officials of America – California warns that the state must stop using gas for electricity, for the health and safety of residents and to stop fueling the climate crisis. EOPA says now is the time to build out more clean energy sources, like wind and solar to ensure blackouts don’t happen again.
42 California cities and counties have strongly discouraged or banned gas hookups in new buildings.
“Our people shouldn’t suffer rolling blackouts because of an antiquated grid that relies on gas to power it,” said San Luis Obispo Mayor Heidi Harmon, Elected Officials to Protect California Leadership Council Co-Chair. “It’s not too late to mitigate what’s happening, but the governor needs to take action and transition to 100 percent clean, renewable energy now. For the health and wellbeing of our people, we have to become a clean energy economy.”
November 19, 2020
Urgent action combating climate change, and systemic change that addresses racial inequalities, has to happen. That’s why Elected Officials to Protect America (EOPA) urges President-elect Biden to prioritize a National Climate Plan that will be just for all, and employs hundreds of thousands transitioning America to a clean energy economy.
“The fossil fuel industry keeps giving us this false choice between a healthy economy or a healthy environment. Here in Culver City, we’re proving that just isn’t true,” said Meghan Sahli-Wells, former Culver City Mayor, Elected Officials to Protect America-California Leadership Council Co-Chair.
November 19, 2020
The production of fossil fuels has affected health outcomes of citizens across the country for decades, causing cancer in children and adults, asthma, respiratory and cardiovascular problems, headaches, nausea, dizziness, and premature and/or low birth weights. Scientific knowledge, from more than two dozen peer-reviewed studies that were published over the last 20 years, all conclude that living near oil and gas wells risks potentially serious health consequences. Petroleum-related air toxins like benzene, toluene, formaldehyde and xylene are the culprits.
“There currently is no binding commitment from the Newsom Administration to create any kind of health and safety buffer zone. The science is clear — people are dying. We have to protect the health and well-being of communities living next to oil and gas wells. The governor needs to issue an executive order for setbacks of 2,500 feet to address this health emergency,” said Sacramento Councilmember-elect Katie Valenzuela, Steering Committee Member of Elected Officials to America/California.
November 11, 2020
On Veterans Day four veterans who also hold elected office, and Brigadier General Stephen Cheney held a press conference to highlight the national security dangers of climate change. The elected officials are part of a group called the Elected Officials to Protect America. (EOPA). Brigadier Cheney is the President of the non-profit American Security Project.(ASA.) Their assessments of the situation locally, and internationally were eye opening.
Please view the LINK HERE
September 24, 2020
Culver City took a stand towards independence from the oil industry late in the evening of October 26, when the council voted unanimously in support of the Oil Drilling Subcommittee, consisting of Vice-Mayor Alex Fisch and Councilmember Meghan Sahli-Wells recommendations, to phase out oil drilling, properly cap and remediate the site and develop a plan to enact a just transition for workers within five years.
“We’re phasing out oil drilling in the Culver City portion of the Inglewood oil field, which happens to be the largest urban oil field in the United States,” said Culver City Councilmember Meghan Sahli-Wells, Elected Officials to Protect California Co-Chair. “Our unanimous vote let other communities across the state know it’s possible to phase out oil fields. We don’t have to be chained to the past, we can and should look to the future now by phasing out oil drilling. I hope Governor Gavin Newsom took note. The state should find avenues to help municipalities that depend on revenue from the oil companies become free from that dependency.”
October 14, 2020
A NRDC analysis of oil and gas development in California shows that approximately 5.4 million people of the state’s population live within a mile of one, or more, of more than 84,000 existing oil and gas wells.
Governor Newsom fails to address these fundamental facts when he publicly claims the state is leading the battle against climate change. He obliquely referenced the need for setbacks around oil and gas drilling operations and the phasing out of fossil fuels in his recent executive order, but ultimately left those tasks to more studies and the legislature.
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