An Act promoting environmental justice in Massachusetts
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| Committee | Recommendation | Vote |
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| J21 | Accompanied | — |
The General Laws are hereby amended by inserting after chapter 21O the following chapter:- CHAPTER 21P. GREEN ZONES.
As used in this chapter, the following words shall, unless the context clearly requires otherwise, have the following meanings: “Environmental justice population”, as defined in section 62 of chapter 30. “Green zone”, areas of the commonwealth designated by the office of green zone administration based on a scoring methodology that accounts for environmental damage, public health disparities, past harm, energy burden, census tract data and other publicly available information, including, but not limited to, proximity of people who live near a landfill or a covered landfill. “Green Zone Investment Fund”, a fund established in section 4 to provide grants, rebates, financing and other investments in green zone populations. “Massachusetts Community Climate Bank”, the entity established, designated or recognized by the commonwealth to finance or facilitate climate-related infrastructure and clean energy projects, with particular emphasis on projects in overburdened and environmental justice populations. “Undersecretary”, the undersecretary of environmental justice of the executive office of energy and environmental affairs. “Office”, the office of green zone administration established in section 2 under the direction of the undersecretary.
(a) There shall be established within the executive office of energy and environmental affairs, under the direction of the undersecretary of environmental justices, an office of green zone administration. (b) The office shall oversee: (i) the development and implementation of a statewide scoring system designed to rank environmental damage, energy burdens and past harm in communities across the commonwealth; (ii) the designation of green zones based on the ranking system established pursuant to clause (i); (iii) the administration of the statewide Green Zone Investment Fund; and (iv) the equitable deployment of clean energy and energy efficiency programs and technologies in communities designated as green zones.
The office shall, in partnership with the department of energy resources, develop a scoring methodology that considers public health outcomes, energy burden data, census tract information and other relevant public data to identify and score environmental justice populations. This methodology shall be subject to periodic review and revision as necessary to ensure that investments continue to target overburdened communities effectively.
(a) There shall be established and set up on the books of the commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the Green Zone Investment Fund. There shall be credited to the fund: (i) any appropriations or other money authorized by the general court and specifically designated to be credited to the fund; (ii) funds from public and private sources, including gifts, grants, donations or investment returns as authorized by law; and (iii) interest earned on any money in the fund. (b) The office, in coordination with the Massachusetts Community Climate Bank, shall administer all disbursements from the fund to eligible recipients for the benefit of designated green zone populations. (c) The Massachusetts Community Climate Bank, under the direction of the office, shall administer the Green Zone Investment Fund, providing financing, grants, rebates or low-interest loans for projects that meet the requirements established under this chapter.
(a) The office shall direct the department of energy resources and other relevant agencies to develop or expand programs to install onsite solar or community solar and energy efficiency measures for at least 250,000 low-income households, or 35 per cent of the total low-income households in the commonwealth, whichever is greater, by 2030. These programs shall have the goal of reducing these households’ energy burden to at or below the statewide average energy burden, as defined by the United States Department of Energy Low-Income Energy Affordability Data (LEAD) Tool. (b) The office shall require the establishment of a minimum of 400 megawatts of energy storage capacity by 2030. Such storage shall be sited in or directly benefit public facilities, especially those serving as community energy resiliency hubs, or be directly located at low-income households to enhance reliability and resilience in overburdened communities.
The office shall coordinate with the department of energy resources, the executive office of labor and workforce development and the office of environmental justice and equity to integrate comprehensive workforce development training into all clean energy and energy storage programs established under this chapter. These training programs shall prioritize recruitment from environmental justice populations and focus on preparing participants for careers in the clean energy sector.
The office shall provide outreach and recruitment campaign grants to community-based organizations to increase participation by residents in overburdened communities in clean energy and energy efficiency programs. Such grants shall prioritize the hiring of residents from overburdened communities to conduct grassroots outreach, education and program recruitment.
(a) The undersecretary shall appoint a community liaison to act as the primary point of contact between the office and environmental justice populations, ensuring that policy decisions and program implementation incorporate community feedback. (b) The office shall establish an advisory board consisting of representatives from designated green zone populations. This board shall be responsible for conducting regular reviews of all clean energy and energy storage programs available to overburdened communities, as well as issuing an annual recommendation report to the secretary of energy and environmental affairs and the general court.
The secretary of energy and environmental affairs shall ensure that no less than 10 per cent of the statewide budget for energy efficiency and renewable energy programs is spent in green zone communities each fiscal year. All programs, incentives and other financing targeted to green zone communities shall be structured to address the unique barriers faced by low-income households and environmental justice populations, including simplified application processes, increased technical support and culturally competent outreach.
(a) The secretary of energy and environmental affairs shall promulgate rules and regulations, pursuant to chapter 30A, as necessary to implement the provisions of this chapter. Such regulations shall include, but not be limited to, establishing criteria for project eligibility for Green Zone Investment Fund support, defining monitoring and evaluation requirements for the programs of the office and setting timelines for compliance with the clean energy, energy efficiency and energy storage targets. (b) The office, in consultation with the advisory board established pursuant to section 8, shall submit an annual report to the governor, the joint committee on telecommunications, utilities and energy, the joint committee on environment, natural resources and agriculture and the house and senate committees on ways and means. Such report shall include: (i) progress updates on meeting the clean energy and energy storage targets; (ii) a detailed accounting of the Green Zone Investment Fund and all projects funded; (iii) evaluations of the scoring methodology; and (iv) any recommendations for legislative or regulatory changes needed to better serve green zone populations.
This act shall take effect 90 days following its passage. The secretary of energy and environmental affairs may extend implementation deadlines by no more than 90 additional days; provided, that a written notice with justification for the extension is submitted to the house and senate clerks.
SECTION 1. The General Laws are hereby amended by inserting after chapter 21O the following chapter:- CHAPTER 21P. GREEN ZONES. Section 1. As used in this chapter, the following words shall, unless the context clearly requires otherwise, have the following meanings: “Environmental justice population”, as defined in section 62 of chapter 30. “Green zone”, areas of the commonwealth designated by the office of green zone administration based on a scoring methodology that accounts for environmental damage, public health disparities, past harm, energy burden, census tract data and other publicly available information, including, but not limited to, proximity of people who live near a landfill or a covered landfill. “Green Zone Investment Fund”, a fund established in section 4 to provide grants, rebates, financing and other investments in green zone populations. “Massachusetts Community Climate Bank”, the entity established, designated or recognized by the commonwealth to finance or facilitate climate-related infrastructure and clean energy projects, with particular emphasis on projects in overburdened and environmental justice populations. “Undersecretary”, the undersecretary of environmental justice of the executive office of energy and environmental affairs. “Office”, the office of green zone administration established in section 2 under the direction of the undersecretary. Section 2. (a) There shall be established within the executive office of energy and environmental affairs, under the direction of the undersecretary of environmental justices, an office of green zone administration. (b) The office shall oversee: (i) the development and implementation of a statewide scoring system designed to rank environmental damage, energy burdens and past harm in communities across the commonwealth; (ii) the designation of green zones based on the ranking system established pursuant to clause (i); (iii) the administration of the statewide Green Zone Investment Fund; and (iv) the equitable deployment of clean energy and energy efficiency programs and technologies in communities designated as green zones. Section 3. The office shall, in partnership with the department of energy resources, develop a scoring methodology that considers public health outcomes, energy burden data, census tract information and other relevant public data to identify and score environmental justice populations. This methodology shall be subject to periodic review and revision as necessary to ensure that investments continue to target overburdened communities effectively. Section 4. (a) There shall be established and set up on the books of the commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the Green Zone Investment Fund. There shall be credited to the fund: (i) any appropriations or other money authorized by the general court and specifically designated to be credited to the fund; (ii) funds from public and private sources, including gifts, grants, donations or investment returns as authorized by law; and (iii) interest earned on any money in the fund. (b) The office, in coordination with the Massachusetts Community Climate Bank, shall administer all disbursements from the fund to eligible recipients for the benefit of designated green zone populations. (c) The Massachusetts Community Climate Bank, under the direction of the office, shall administer the Green Zone Investment Fund, providing financing, grants, rebates or low-interest loans for projects that meet the requirements established under this chapter. Section 5. (a) The office shall direct the department of energy resources and other relevant agencies to develop or expand programs to install onsite solar or community solar and energy efficiency measures for at least 250,000 low-income households, or 35 per cent of the total low-income households in the commonwealth, whichever is greater, by 2030. These programs shall have the goal of reducing these households’ energy burden to at or below the statewide average energy burden, as defined by the United States Department of Energy Low-Income Energy Affordability Data (LEAD) Tool. (b) The office shall require the establishment of a minimum of 400 megawatts of energy storage capacity by 2030. Such storage shall be sited in or directly benefit public facilities, especially those serving as community energy resiliency hubs, or be directly located at low-income households to enhance reliability and resilience in overburdened communities. Section 6. The office shall coordinate with the department of energy resources, the executive office of labor and workforce development and the office of environmental justice and equity to integrate comprehensive workforce development training into all clean energy and energy storage programs established under this chapter. These training programs shall prioritize recruitment from environmental justice populations and focus on preparing participants for careers in the clean energy sector. Section 7. The office shall provide outreach and recruitment campaign grants to community-based organizations to increase participation by residents in overburdened communities in clean energy and energy efficiency programs. Such grants shall prioritize the hiring of residents from overburdened communities to conduct grassroots outreach, education and program recruitment. Section 8. (a) The undersecretary shall appoint a community liaison to act as the primary point of contact between the office and environmental justice populations, ensuring that policy decisions and program implementation incorporate community feedback. (b) The office shall establish an advisory board consisting of representatives from designated green zone populations. This board shall be responsible for conducting regular reviews of all clean energy and energy storage programs available to overburdened communities, as well as issuing an annual recommendation report to the secretary of energy and environmental affairs and the general court. Section 9. The secretary of energy and environmental affairs shall ensure that no less than 10 per cent of the statewide budget for energy efficiency and renewable energy programs is spent in green zone communities each fiscal year. All programs, incentives and other financing targeted to green zone communities shall be structured to address the unique barriers faced by low-income households and environmental justice populations, including simplified application processes, increased technical support and culturally competent outreach. Section 10. (a) The secretary of energy and environmental affairs shall promulgate rules and regulations, pursuant to chapter 30A, as necessary to implement the provisions of this chapter. Such regulations shall include, but not be limited to, establishing criteria for project eligibility for Green Zone Investment Fund support, defining monitoring and evaluation requirements for the programs of the office and setting timelines for compliance with the clean energy, energy efficiency and energy storage targets. (b) The office, in consultation with the advisory board established pursuant to section 8, shall submit an annual report to the governor, the joint committee on telecommunications, utilities and energy, the joint committee on environment, natural resources and agriculture and the house and senate committees on ways and means. Such report shall include: (i) progress updates on meeting the clean energy and energy storage targets; (ii) a detailed accounting of the Green Zone Investment Fund and all projects funded; (iii) evaluations of the scoring methodology; and (iv) any recommendations for legislative or regulatory changes needed to better serve green zone populations. SECTION 2. This act shall take effect 90 days following its passage. The secretary of energy and environmental affairs may extend implementation deadlines by no more than 90 additional days; provided, that a written notice with justification for the extension is submitted to the house and senate clerks.