Sen. Sal DiDomenico and his colleagues in the Massachusetts Senate recently passed H.4613, An Act promoting climate change adaptation, environmental and natural resource protection, and investment in recreational assets and opportunity, colloquially known as the ‘environmental bond bill.’ The legislation authorizes the issuance of more than $2 billion in bonds to implement climate change adaptation programs and to improve existing climate resilient infrastructure.
Sen. DiDomenico filed a number of amendments to the environmental bond bill, and secured $2M for Ryan Playground in Charlestown to support the design and implementation of flood resilience.
“This bill is another important step needed to secure our Commonwealth’s climate readiness, and to ensure that our municipalities have the resources needed to preserve their public spaces and infrastructure,” said Sen. DiDomenico, Assistant Majority Leader of the Massachusetts Senate. “With this bond bill, my colleagues and I in the Senate have once again reaffirmed out commitment to environmental stewardship and our support for our local communities.”
Massachusetts has continually demonstrated leadership in the fight against global climate change, and the investments authorized in this legislation ensure that cities and towns across the Commonwealth are protected and that public spaces and infrastructure are improved and maintained for the public good.
The legislation ensures that climate change prevention programs are sufficiently funded and authorizes capitalization of the Global Warming Solutions Trust Fund, which is to be used to fund costs associated with implementation of the Global Warming Solutions Act, the Commonwealth’s Clean Energy and Climate Plan, and state and local strategies for climate change adaptation.