NC Interfaith Power & Light Joins Legal Fight for 'Energy Justice'
North Carolina Interfaith Power & Light, a program of the North Carolina Council of Churches, has filed a petition to intervene in the fight for energy justice in North Carolina as the state transitions to a carbon-free economy. If granted, the petition would make the faith-based environmental organization a party to legal proceedings to ensure low-wealth North Carolinians have reliable access to affordable electricity as the state moves toward clean, renewable energy.
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Statement on West Virginia v. EPA: Supreme Court Deals Blow to Common-sense Climate Protections
Once again turning its back on bedrock precedent and the will of the American people, the U.S. Supreme Court today sent a wrecking ball through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) ability to protect us all from climate change. More than that, though, even the still-settling dust cannot conceal the extent of the damage this decision does to our system of regulatory safeguards, as it threatens our ability to take common-sense actions to protect public health, safety, financial security, and the environment.
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New Poll Finds Strong Bipartisan Support for Building a Modernized, People-Centered Regulatory System
The U.S. public strongly backs legislation that would overhaul the nation’s regulatory system by ending corporate dominance of the federal rulemaking process and enabling government agencies to better protect people and the planet, according to a new poll released today by the Center for Progressive Reform and Data for Progress.
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Opinion Overturning Roe and Casey Abandons the Rule of Law, Underscores Need for Americans to Reclaim Our Court
Today's U.S. Supreme Court opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization warrants unqualified condemnation and sends a chilling warning that the Court's conservative majority has embraced extremism and abandoned the rule of law, putting longstanding rights and protections in grave danger.
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Author(s): Minor Sinclair
Leaked Opinion Overturning Roe and Casey Abandons the Rule of Law, Damages the Integrity of the Supreme Court
The draft U.S. Supreme Court opinion leaked yesterday warrants unqualified condemnation and sends a chilling warning that longstanding protections — in areas from health, safety, and the environment, to equity and equality — are in grave danger. The Court's conservative majority has made clear it is willing to overturn our constitutional right to reproductive freedom and privacy and abandon precedent when it suits its ideological whims. It is also taking an extreme activist approach to the cases before it, making law from the bench. In doing so, the majority is abandoning the rule of law and severely damaging the Court's integrity.
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Author(s): Minor Sinclair
New Report Offers Tools to Strengthen 'Energy Democracy' at Key Federal Agency
The federal government can and should do more to help the public meaningfully engage in the nation’s energy policy, leveling the playing field for them against corporate special interests with outsized access and influence over energy decisions. These decisions have profound implications for public and environmental health, our ability to mitigate and adapt to climate change, our national security, and more, according to a new report by the Center for Progressive Reform.
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U.S. House Moves to Build a FAIR-er Justice System
The U.S. House of Representatives has taken an important step to repair our system of civil justice and advance equity and justice for all. On March 17, the House passed the Forced Arbitration Injustice Repeal (FAIR) Act, which would block companies from forcing Americans to settle disputes in a rigged system of arbitration rather than in an impartial court of law. The act now heads to the U.S. Senate.
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Author(s): M. Isabelle Chaudry
"A Good Day for Justice"
We at the Center for Progressive Reform applaud the U.S. Senate for clearing critical women’s safety legislation that would enable survivors of sexual assault and harassment to hold their abusers accountable in court. The Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act overwhelmingly passed the U.S. House with broad bipartisan support earlier this week and now heads to President Biden’s desk. We eagerly await his signature.
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Author(s): M. Isabelle Chaudry
Rampant Forced Arbitration Clauses in Corporate Contracts Take Greatest Toll on Historically Marginalized Groups, New Report Finds
Corporations are subjecting millions of American workers and consumers to legal clauses that force them to settle claims in a rigged system of forced arbitration instead of an impartial courthouse — an alarming trend that harms historically marginalized groups, according to a new report by the Center for Progressive Reform.
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Disaster at Winston-Salem Fertilizer Plant Is Unacceptable, Unnecessary, and Entirely Preventable
A fire that erupted Monday night at a fertilizer plant in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, continues to burn endangering thousands of people in the area who have had to evacuate or shelter-in-place. The threat of a deadly explosion remains as the fire continues to burn out of control, threatening the health and safety of the nearby communities. This tragic chemical disaster poses unacceptable risk to those who live, work, or go to school near facilities like this, yet they regularly happen all over the United States, despite being entirely preventable. Communities at the fenceline of the chemical industry in other communities live daily with similar harm and threat due to major gaps in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) federal rules on hazardous chemical storage, use, and industrial facility safety. It’s time for the EPA to prevent these harmful chemical disasters once and for all.
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