For Immediate Release:
April 5, 2021
Media Contact:
Dan Morris. 917.952.8920.
ALIGN to NYC Council: Local Law 97 Will Create More than 40,000 Green Jobs, Help Expand Annual Retrofit Market to $20 Billion
New York – Today, advocacy group ALIGN testified to the New York City Council about the economic and job creation benefits of a robust implementation of Local Law 97, a city law would require building owners to undertake retrofits and other energy efficiency upgrades as part of a larger effort to tackle the climate crisis.
According to testimony ALIGN delivered today at a City Council hearing on Local Law 97, “We project Local Law 97 will create more than 40,000 green jobs and has the potential to expand the annual retrofit market to $20 billion. That’s 13 times larger than today’s market.”
“The city must prioritize investments and job creation strategies for the communities that have been hit the hardest by both climate change and the COVID-19 crisis, especially as we transition into a new administration. It is critical that the city continues its efforts to address racial inequities, create good union jobs, and fight climate change by implementing Local Law 97, ” said Maritza Silva-Farrell, Executive Director of ALIGN and a leader in the Climate Works for All coalition that helped build community, labor, and political support for Local Law 97.
ALIGN played a hands-on role in building support for the New York City Council’s passage of Local Law 97 in 2019, and in successfully defending the law against challenges from Governor Cuomo and the real-estate industry in this year’s state budget negotiation process.
Local Law 97 was crafted and passed in response to a 2017 report from ALIGN that highlighted the role of New York City’s dirty buildings – especially those owned by Donald Trump and Jared Kushner– in driving climate pollution and greenhouse emissions.
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