Draft City Resolutions: November 1, 2006
Global Warming:
Whereas being a good steward of natural resources is vital to long term
ecological and economic stability; and
Whereas Carbon Dioxide levels are at twice their pre-Industrial
Revolution levels; and
Whereas the Stern Report (October 30, 2006, issued by the British
Government) estimates:
- the cost of Global Warming will consume about 20% of GDP
- Global Warming can be mitigated by an investment of 1% of GDP; and
Whereas The Clean Air Act of 1970 supports the concept that being
responsible stewards of natural resources improves profits:
Be it resolved that a taxing authority will be
formed and charged with the task of taxing sources of congestion,
waste, air and water pollution, and;
Be it resolved that all new public capital expenditures will be
reviewed for their Global Warming burden, and;
Be it resolved that city leaders will encourage business leaders to act
in advance of taxing policies to mitigate business impact on Global
Warming.
Transportation is Essential
Whereas transporting goods and services is essential to the economy; and
Whereas automating sewer, water, electrical and communications
infrastructure networks resulted in improved standards of living and
economic opportunity;
Be it resolved that innovations for computerized
control and automating transportation of goods and people will be
granted non-exclusive rights-of-way access commensurate with their
potential or proven value in implementing sustainable infrastructure.
Oil Addiction
Whereas profits from foreign oil dependency funded the terrorist attack
on the United States on 9/11/2001; and
Whereas NATO troops are deployed in foreign lands, in harms way,
protecting access to foreign oil; and
Whereas political instability and open hostility in some oil producing
nations is a threat to the United States economy; and
Whereas oil is a limited resource, discovery of new oil deposits peaked
in 1964 and extraction, has peaked or will peak within 26 years; and
Whereas the tripling of crude oil prices between 2000 and 2006 adds
hardships to the economy; and
Whereas the Oil Embargo of 1973 caused economic dislocation and
provides an indication of hardships coming due to future oil shortages;
and
Whereas it will take 30 to 50 years to re-tool the economy to eliminate
foreign oil dependency;
Be it resolved that all new capital expenditures
will be reviewed for their contribution to becoming independent of
foreign oil, and;
Be it resolved that city agencies must document the duration required
to approve or disapprove sustainable infrastructure requests.
Safety
Whereas automobile accidents in Minnesota kill about 11 users per
100,000 population; and
Whereas automobile accidents cause further injuries and emotional and
financial hardships; and
Whereas the cost of car accidents in Minnesota exceeds $3 billion
annually;
Be it resolved that alternative transport
mechanisms that might be safer will be granted non-exclusive
rights-of-ways access commensurate with their potential or proven value
in improving safety.
Personal Mobility
Whereas personal mobility is essential to economic, social and
educational opportunity; and
Whereas automobiles account for about 97% of trips;
Be it resolved that innovations for providing
personal mobility will be granted non-exclusive rights-of-way access
commensurate with their potential or proven value in implementing
sustainable infrastructure.
Funding
Whereas benefiting from innovation is a characteristic of private
sector: and
Whereas public funds are limited;
Whereas the building of the Transcontinental Railroads and the Internet
are good examples of radically expanding infrastructure with private
capital;
Be it resolved that Innovation should be funded by
the private sector: and
Be it resolved that all subsidies for transportation should be
publicized so true value can be assessed; and
Be it resolved subsidies should be eliminated to the extent practical
so innovation competes on a level playing field with existing
transportation resources.
Encouraging Sources of Innovations
Whereas current infrastructure is responsible for oil dependency and
contributes to Global Warming;
Whereas innovation to create new infrastructure is needed;
Whereas innovation often comes from entrepreneurs and small businesses
that do not have extensive resources;
Be it resolved that city agencies must justify
delays in granting innovations the opportunity to aid in building
sustainable infrastructure, and;
Be it resolved that the city will establish an ombudsman program for
reducing administrative delays in achieving sustainable infrastructure,
and;
Be it resolved that the city will deregulate to the extent practical to
improve the environment for innovation flourish, and;
Be it resolved that the city will establish an incentive program to
help propagate those innovations that result in achieving public policy
objectives in the amount of one-third the estimated cost savings of the
innovation.
Jobs
Where as other cities, states, nations share the need to build
sustainable infrastructure; and
Whereas exporting innovations will create jobs and businesses;
Be it resolved that city agencies will publicize
successes and promote innovations that provide sustainable
infrastructure, and;
Be it resolved that the city will collaborate with existing export
agencies to encourage the export of sustainable infrastructure
technologies.
Disruption Mitigation
Whereas the shift from foreign oil dependency to sustainable
infrastructure will be disruptive; and
Whereas an estimated 1.4 million new jobs will be created and an
undefined number of jobs will be lost and transformed;
Be it resolved that the city will allocate the
one-third of estimated cost savings of innovations to fund job and
educational retraining for those workers displaced by the transition to
sustainable infrastructure, and;
Be it resolved the city will examine and collaborate with other
governments to implement a windfall tax for mobility users to aid in
retraining displaced workers and creating incentive programs to
propagate innovations, and;
Be it resolved the city will collaborate with
other government agencies to allow workers to change jobs with minimal
risk to health and supporting benefits.
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