CREDO Mobile Blog

VICTORY: No vote on A.B. 2145

Community Choice energy programs empower local communities to take control of decision-making about the sources and cost of their electrical power. Not-for-profit, democratically controlled Community Choice energy programs enable local governments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while creating green jobs and stimulating the local economy. These programs are dedicated to reducing consumer electricity demand, providing competitive electricity rates and maximizing the amount of renewable energy in their mix.

PG&E introduced A.B. 2145, a bill designed to destroy Community Choice energy programs in California. The bill would place arbitrary geographic limitations on Community Choice programs and impose a complex and unnecessary bureaucratic complaint process. Thanks in part to 28,353 CREDO members, the legislative session ended without a vote on A.B. 2145.

VICTORY: Gov. O’Malley vetoes anti-wind bill

The Maryland Legislature passed  HB 1168, a moratorium on land-based wind energy in over 40 percent of the state and nearly 90 percent of Maryland’s most viable wind development areas. It would have significantly undermined Maryland’s progress toward a clean energy economy while setting a damaging national precedent that could stymie land-based wind power development across the country for years to come.

After grassroots activism that included almost 3,000 CREDO signatures, Gov. O’Malley vetoed the anti-wind bill.

VICTORY: NAACP and DOJ win against voter suppression in Ohio

In July, the Department of Justice backed the NAACP’s legal challenge to the reduction of early voting days and the elimination of “Golden Week,” an early voting week in Ohio. Then in September, a federal judge ruled in favor of the NAACP and DOJ, blocking Republicans’ latest attempt to make it harder to vote. CREDO members were part of the 105,000 who protected and expanded voting rights.

VICTORY: Dr. Vivek Murthy confirmed as surgeon general

Dr. Vivek Murthy, President Obama’s nominee for surgeon general, teaches at Harvard Medical School and started a technology company to improve the efficiency of clinical trials around the world. He is also a gun control advocate who has supported measures like an assault weapons ban an mandatory safety training. The NRA tried to torpedo his nomination in the Senate.  

After more than 120,000 activists signed the petition and more than 1,400 called key Senate offices, the Senate confirmed Dr. Murthy as surgeon general by a vote of 51-43 on Monday, Dec. 15.

VICTORY: Berkeley, California raises minimum wage to $12.53

Berkeley, California’s minimum wage was the state-mandated $8.00 per hour, which had not been updated since 2007. The proposal sent to the city council included a gradual increase to $13.34 by 2022 with a faster acceleration for corporations and chains, annual cost of living adjustments and health care benefits worth at least $2.22 per hour starting in 2015.

The Berkeley City Council voted to increase the minimum wage to $12.53, rolled out over a 2 year period with annual increases to follow. This victory means 5000 a year in the pockets of low-wage working families that will flow directly into our local economy improving the lives of tens of thousands of people.

VICTORY: Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick increases food-stamps allowance

Last month, President Obama signed a new “farm bill” that cuts food stamp funding by about $800 million per year. These heartless cuts – which Republicans forced through in Congress – slash $90 in food stamp benefits per month from 850,000 families nationwide.

Fortunately, a bipartisan group of governors in New York, Pennsylvania and Connecticut found a way to reverse these devastating cuts by participating in a special “heat and eat” program, which would leverage heating assistance payments into higher food stamp benefits. By slightly increasing state funding for heating assistance to residents slated to lose part of their food stamp benefits, these governors have completely stopped the Republican food stamp cut from affecting residents in their states.

After almost 4,000 signatures, on Tuesday March 18, Massachusetts became the 8th state to announce that it would leverage heating assistance funding to stop food stamp cuts from affecting its citizens.

VICTORY: Minnesota increases minimum wage

The minimum wage is not a living wage. In Minnesota, minimum wage was not indexed to inflation. Minnesota minimum wage workers shouldn’t have to wait nine years or more for a raise, hoping that the political climate might be right – and businesses should have the stability of knowing in advance what they will be paying their workers. Thanks to grassroots activism that included 2,700 CREDO signatures, Minnesota raised its minimum wage, indexed to inflation.

VICTORY: President Obama signs executive order barring anti-gay discrimination for federal contractors

In more than 30 states, Americans can be fired just because they’re gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender. On June 16, the White House announced that President Obama intends to sign an executive order barring federal contractors from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Almost 107,000 of you signed a petition calling on him to do this. The executive order will allow millions more Americans to go to work empowered with the right to do their jobs free of harassment or discrimination.

VICTORY: Gov. Cuomo extends solar program through 2023

The New York Public Service Commission planned an extension to NY-Sun Initiative solar program through 2023. The plan results in 10x more affordable solar up and down the state, enough to power 465,000 New York homes and cut greenhouse gas emissions by 2.3 million tons annually. Private investment in solar at this scale reduces the need for utilities to build traditional power plants and transmission infrastructure, which can help keep rates low for all New Yorkers. So far, NY-Sun has resulted in almost 300 megawatts of solar capacity, more than was installed in the entire decade prior to the program. The solar industry employs 5,000 New Yorkers, ranking New York 5th in the nation for solar job creation.

Thanks in part to activism from almost 11,000 CREDO members, the plan was extended to 2023.