Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2009

Abstract

The new Obama administration is reversing eight years of federal refusal to take mandatory action to address climate change. However, the lower levels of government will continue to play central roles. States and municipalities are the principal regulators of building construction, land use, and electric utilities; they are major users of goods and services that generate greenhouse gases (GHGs) – and they have other key roles.

To see how New York can better contribute to these efforts, in 2008 Bernice K. Leber, president of the New York State Bar Association, convened a Task Force on Global Warming. Its 12 members were given the task of updating two prior NYSBA reports on the subject and, more importantly, formulating specific action recommendations that could be presented to Democratic Governor David Paterson, his administrative agencies, and the Legislature. I was honored to be named chair of the task force. Students in the Columbia Law School Environmental Law Clinic performed key research, and the NYSBA’s Environmental Law Section and numerous state agencies provided invaluable assistance.

Disciplines

Environmental Law | Law

Center/Program

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Share

COinS