LOS ANGELES — Mayor Eric Garcetti today kicked off a Decade of Action to confront and combat the climate crisis, with the signing of “L.A.’s Green New Deal: Leading By Example,” his 25th Executive Directive since taking office.
Joined by a diverse coalition of elected officials, environmental advocates, business leaders, and young climate activists, the Mayor laid out his vision for a carbon neutral Los Angeles and a firm commitment to environmental justice and equity. L.A.’s Green New Deal leads with bold action to zero out Los Angeles’ main sources of harmful emissions: buildings, transportation, electricity, and trash. Adopting this agenda will make the city a global model for how to create a more sustainable planet and an economy that works for everyone.
“The science could not be clearer and the stakes could not be higher. We must act this decade to save the planet and create a more equitable, prosperous, and healthy future for our children and grandchildren,” said Mayor Garcetti. “There is literally no time to waste — because what we do in the next ten years will determine the health of our planet and whether there’s a job, a paycheck, and a place for everyone in our economy.”
There is scientific consensus that we have until 2030 to halve global emissions, slow the rise of temperatures, invest in renewable sources of energy, and tackle climate change before the effects of this crisis become irreversible.
Mayor Garcetti signed the Executive Directive to accelerate the work of the Green New Deal, and adopt new steps and stronger accountability measures to align City department policies and procedures with the City’s climate objectives. The Directive includes measures to:
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Develop a series of bus and light rail infrastructure improvements — such as bus only lanes, signal priority, and queue jumpers — to improve transit speeds by 30% by 2028.
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Promote walking, bicycling and micro-mobility with a comprehensive Citywide network of active transportation corridors, including Class IV protected bike lanes, Class I paths along regional waterways, and Class III low-stress neighborhood bike improvements.
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Encourage city pension boards to explore divesting from fossil fuel companies and investing in the green economy.
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Mandate that all new construction, major upgrades, and retrofits of municipally-owned buildings demonstrate a pathway to carbon neutrality.
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Accelerate the City’s bus fleet target to be entirely zero emission in time for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
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Support Metro in the development of a Congestion Pricing pilot program.
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Expand low-income and multi-family household access to local clean energy.
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Ensure that City Hall is zero waste by 2025.
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Amend the City’s Green Building Code to ensure all new roofs and renovations are cool roofs.
The Executive Directive signed today is part of Mayor Garcetti’s 2020 Vision for L.A.’s Future, an agenda for serving, strengthening, and sustaining the aspirations and interests of our next generation. Beyond addressing climate change, the Mayor is focused on building a future for Los Angeles where everyone has the opportunity to earn a decent wage, afford housing that meets the needs of their families, take public transportation, and live in safety and security. 2020 Vision encompasses policies to provide housing and healing to unsheltered Angelenos; lift wages for low-income and middle class workers; prepare L.A.’s workforce for the innovations and economic trends of tomorrow; build out a robust transit network; and confront the affordable housing crisis.
For the full text of Mayor Garcetti’s 25th Executive Directive, please click here.
For more information about L.A.'s Green New Deal, please visit http://plan.lamayor.org/