Environment: Protecting Our Communities and Planet

Environmental justice is a public health issue, an economic issue, and a civil rights issue. As your Congresswoman, I will fight to ensure that every community, especially low-income and marginalized neighborhoods, has access to clean air, safe water, healthy food, and sustainable energy.

Climate Readiness & Mitigation

Climate change disproportionately affects vulnerable communities. In Congress, I will:

• Tie federal climate resilience funding to community engagement, requiring low-income and minority populations to be included in planning and development decisions.

• Increase funding for agencies studying climate change, including the EPA, NASA, NOAA, and the Department of the Interior.

• Support locally-driven research in states and municipalities most impacted by climate threats to identify solutions tailored to community needs.
  
  

Lead Poisoning & Childhood Asthma Prevention

Our children’s health is also threatened by environmental hazards. Research shows that parts of the 7th Congressional District face dangerous levels of lead in water and air toxins that contribute to high rates of lead poisoning and childhood asthma, disproportionately impacting working-class Black and Latinx communities.

As your Congresswoman, I will treat these threats as national public health emergencies. I will work to create a national task force of experts and community leaders dedicated to preventing lead exposure and reducing asthma triggers in schools and neighborhoods. Strong and swift investments in prevention, remediation, and community health programs can protect entire generations of children from lifelong damage.

Public Health & Environmental Justice

Environmental hazards are public health crises. I will:

• Ensure health insurers cover care for pollution-related illnesses and advocate for remediation of Superfund and contaminated sites in disproportionately impacted communities.

• Push for data collection on environmental injustice, so we can track damage and take targeted action to prevent and repair harm.

• Expand the Healthy Food Financing Initiative, creating access to grocery stores and sustainable farming programs in underserved communities.

Renewable Energy & Green Jobs

We must transition to a clean, equitable energy economy. I support:

• A Green New Deal and rapid decarbonization of the power grid, aiming for 100% renewable energy by 2035.

• Rejoin the Paris Climate Accords and commit to significant carbon emission reductions across all sectors.

• Expanding STEAM education and financing programs for small businesses developing clean energy technologies, ensuring equity in the emerging green workforce.
  
  

Reducing Toxics & Pollution

Communities deserve protection from environmental toxins. I will:

• Empower the EPA to enforce and expand regulations on toxic waste in air, water, and soil.

• Support the S.2183 - Superfund Polluter Pays Restoration Act of 2021, ensuring polluting industries fund the cleanup of affected communities.
  
  

Mass Transit & Electric Vehicles

Equitable transportation is key to a sustainable future. I will:

• Protect and expand tax incentives for EV buyers and manufacturers, promoting clean technology.

• Create a regional planning body to improve access to safe, sustainable transit options in all neighborhoods.

• Prioritize electrification in low-income and minority communities, which often rely on public transit but have historically been overlooked.
  
  

Protecting Public Lands & Tribal Sovereignty

Our public lands and natural resources are national treasures. In Congress, I will:

• Promote equitable access to green spaces in federal housing developments and zoning decisions.

• Expand protections for federal wilderness areas, curbing resource extraction to protect ecosystems, coastal regions, and climate stability.

• Uphold the sovereignty of Tribal Nations, working with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, EPA, and the Interior Department to respect tribal rights over water, land, and energy infrastructure projects.