At our December membership meeting on Monday, the Miami Beach Democratic Club unanimously approved the following resolution, calling for Representative-Elect Donna Shalala to publicly support the creation of the select Committee for a Green New Deal in the U.S. House of Representatives:

A RESOLUTION

In Support of a Select Committee for a Green New Deal

in the U.S. House of Representatives

WHEREAS

In 2018, the Miami Beach Democratic Club has volunteered countless hours supporting the candidates of the Democratic Party up and down the ballot in Florida, including our candidates for the U.S. House in South Florida; and

WHEREAS

Our newly elected representative, Donna Shalala, has an environmental record dating back to the 1970s, and ran on a comprehensive platform of combating sea-level rise and climate change; and

WHEREAS

The Miami Beach Democratic Club does not only support candidates during elections, but has worked to support initiatives that are congruent with our values, including efforts to re-enfranchise voters who have unfairly been denied their voting rights, to promote a clean and healthy natural environment, clean water, clean beaches, and to fight sea level rise; and

WHEREAS

Climate change already threatens many aspects of life in South Florida, damaging our tourism economy, sinking our home values, threatening our drinking water, causing deadlier, more frequent, and more damaging hurricanes, introducing dangerous invasive species to our waterways and neighborhoods, increasing the incidence of new diseases, and battering our already-fragile and insufficient infrastructure; and

WHEREAS

The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change issued a report this year, which declared that we have until 2030 — 12 years from now — to halt greenhouse gas emissions with the goal of keeping global temperature rise to 1.5º C above pre-industrial levels and avert the worst effects of climate change; and

WHEREAS

The actions that Congress has taken to combat climate change have been woefully insufficient considering the urgent task at hand; be it

RESOLVED

That the Miami Beach Democratic Club believes the Democratic Party must boldly lead with moral clarity and a sense of optimism in the face of climate change; and be it further

RESOLVED

That our elected officials should reject campaign contributions from fossil fuel industries because we expect our elected officials to craft legislation that will regulate those industries free from their influence; and be it further

RESOLVED

That the Miami Beach Democratic Club supports the creation of a Select Committee for a Green New Deal which shall investigate, hold hearings, and draft legislation for a Green New Deal with the following goals to be accomplished in less than 10 years (language drawn from draft text for proposed addendum to House rules for 116th Congress):

• 100% of national power generation from renewable sources;
• building a national, energy-efficient, “smart” grid;
• upgrading every residential and industrial building for state-of-the-art energy efficiency, comfort, and safety;
• decarbonizing the manufacturing, agricultural, and other industries;
• decarbonizing, repairing, and improving transportation and other infrastructure;
• funding massive investment in the drawdown and capture of greenhouse gases;
• making “green” technology, industry, expertise, products, and services a major export of the United States, with the aim of becoming the undisputed international leader in helping other countries transition to completely carbon neutral economies and bringing about a global Green New Deal.

And be it further

RESOLVED

That the Miami Beach Democratic Club calls upon Congresswoman-elect Donna Shalala, our newly elected Member of Congress for Florida’s 27th District, to publicly support the creation of the select Committee for a Green New Deal in the U.S. House of Representatives.