Washington (July 30, 2021) – As more than 80 wildfires continue to burn across the United States, President Biden, Vice President Harris, and governors of Western states brought new attention to the importance of passing a Civilian Climate Corps.

 

During a Friday call, Biden, Harris, and the governors including Gavin Newsom (CA), Jay Inslee (WA), Steve Sisolak (NV) discussed the dangerous wildfire situation in the West, with the Governors highlighting the need for more forest management and conservation resources, including the workforce that would be made available under Senator Markey’s Civilian Climate Corps. Earlier in the week, Newsom and Sisolak held a joint press conference to discuss the ongoing crisis.

 

Here are key excerpts:

 

The Hill: “Biden also invoked the Civilian Climate Corps included in the infrastructure bill, saying, “The truth is it’s not fundamentally different in the help it could provide than the civilian corps put together in the Depression.”

The Hill: “California’s Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) spoke in favor of the proposed corps, saying his state is “proving your theory” about the effectiveness of such a program.”

 

CNN: “We need help. We need help on the federal side. We need more people coming in. We need more resources. We need more air support. We need more people and more boots on the ground in order to make this a more fair fight in terms of fighting these fires,” Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak said at a joint news conference with California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday.”

CNN: “Schumer said one of his top priorities for a $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation bill was a Civilian Climate Corps, which is meant to employ thousands of Americans in building climate resiliency, reforestation, and other climate-related projects.”

 

Senator Markey’s Civilian Climate Corps for Job and Justice Act updates, modernizes, and expands the concept of the New Deal-era Civilian Conservation Corps and will create over a million new, equitable and good-paying jobs across America while combatting the climate crisis. The program will ensure that all Americans who want to participate will have the resources to do so, regardless of race, age, or gender; broaden the range of eligible projects; provide 21st century health and education benefits; deepen partnerships with unions; and preserve Tribal sovereignty.