House Resolution 111 - Introduced HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 111 BY ISENHART , KURTZ , KURTH , HUNTER , M. SMITH , MASCHER , ANDERSON , McKEAN , STECKMAN , B. MEYER , COHOON , FORBES , GASKILL , DERRY , WINCKLER , LENSING , EHLERT , BROWN-POWERS , WESSEL-KROESCHELL , DONAHUE , SUNDE , OLSON , KRESSIG , ABDUL-SAMAD , STAED , WILLIAMS , BENNETT , JACOBY , R. SMITH , NIELSEN , McCONKEY , JAMES , WILBURN , KONFRST , WOLFE , and MATSON A Resolution urging the Governor of Iowa to take all 1 necessary actions for the State of Iowa to become a 2 member of the United States Climate Alliance. 3 WHEREAS, 195 countries signed the Paris Agreement 4 on Climate Change, which aims to strengthen the global 5 response to the threat of climate change, including by 6 holding the increase in the global average temperature 7 to less than 2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial 8 levels; and 9 WHEREAS, the United States signed the Paris 10 Agreement, which builds upon the United Nations 11 Framework Convention on Climate Change and recruits 12 governments to the common cause of ambitiously 13 combatting climate change by limiting global 14 temperature increases, by dealing with climate impacts, 15 and by adapting to its effects; and 16 WHEREAS, the current presidential administration has 17 initiated the formal process to withdraw the United 18 States from the Paris Agreement; and 19 WHEREAS, only international cooperation to reduce 20 greenhouse gas emissions can mitigate climate 21 impacts; and 22 -1- LSB 5107YH (5) 88 js/rn 1/ 5

H.R. 111 WHEREAS, 24 states and the Commonwealth of Puerto 1 Rico have joined the United States Climate Alliance, 2 committing to the goal of reducing greenhouse gas 3 emissions consistent with the goals of the Paris 4 Agreement; and 5 WHEREAS, the Iowa Climate Change Advisory Council, 6 which was created by the Iowa Department of Natural 7 Resources, submitted proposals to the Governor and the 8 General Assembly addressing a full range of policies 9 and strategies, including the cost-effectiveness of the 10 strategies and multiple scenarios designed to reduce 11 statewide greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent or 12 more by 2050; and 13 WHEREAS, since the council’s report, researchers and 14 educators from nearly every Iowa college and university 15 have jointly produced annual statements on the impact 16 of climate change on Iowans; and 17 WHEREAS, the United States Climate Alliance agenda 18 includes addressing matters critical to Iowa’s future, 19 including advanced transportation, natural and working 20 lands, the role of utilities, appliance efficiency 21 standards, the competitiveness of renewable energy, 22 clean energy financing, insurance risk, pollution 23 control, and community resilience; and 24 WHEREAS, Iowa’s participation in the United States 25 Climate Alliance will help the state achieve the goals 26 of the Iowa Energy Plan developed under the leadership 27 of then Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds by the Iowa 28 Economic Development Authority and the Iowa Department 29 of Transportation, which aspires to collaborate 30 -2- LSB 5107YH (5) 88 js/rn 2/ 5

H.R. 111 locally, grow sustainably, and lead nationally, 1 consistent with the aspiration that now is the time to 2 continue to build on Iowa’s energy-related successes 3 by charting a sustainable and predictable course for 4 tomorrow; and 5 WHEREAS, the General Assembly and former Governor 6 Terry E. Branstad approved legislation moving the 7 Iowa Energy Center to the Iowa Economic Development 8 Authority, strengthening the capacity of state 9 government to implement the Iowa Energy Plan and 10 to provide national leadership in the modern energy 11 sector; and 12 WHEREAS, the Iowa Economic Development Authority’s 13 City Energy Management Program worked with 14 participating communities to create energy action 15 plans, establish the financial case to invest in energy 16 efficiency, and develop a steady source of funding for 17 energy efficiency projects; and 18 WHEREAS, the Iowa Economic Development Authority 19 continues to encourage energy efficiency initiatives 20 at the local level through Iowa’s B3 Public Buildings 21 Benchmarking Program, by conducting Certified Energy 22 Managers Training, by operating an energy efficiency 23 program for rural small businesses, and by offering 24 grants to support energy efficient homes; and 25 WHEREAS, the Iowa Economic Development Authority’s 26 Community Development Division issued a request for 27 proposals for bidders to conduct an assessment of the 28 economic development potential of energy storage in 29 Iowa beginning in 2020; and 30 -3- LSB 5107YH (5) 88 js/rn 3/ 5

H.R. 111 WHEREAS, the General Assembly created an incentive 1 for individuals to adopt carbon-free energy production 2 in residences by reauthorizing a geothermal heat pump 3 tax credit in 2019; and 4 WHEREAS, the Iowa Utilities Board and Office of 5 Consumer Advocate have maintained an ongoing Energy 6 Efficiency Collaborative, and the board has opened 7 an inquiry into the potential for widespread use of 8 distributed energy resources in Iowa; and 9 WHEREAS, Iowa’s public universities have engaged 10 in a five-year project funded by the National Science 11 Foundation to build Iowa’s research capacity in 12 sustainable energy systems, supporting studies in 13 bioenergy, wind energy, energy utilization, and energy 14 policy in partnership with the state’s community 15 colleges, private colleges, school districts, 16 government agencies, and industries; and 17 WHEREAS, Iowa State University’s Bioeconomy 18 Institute, which supports Iowa agriculture in the 19 state’s quest for sustainable sources of fuel, energy, 20 chemicals, and material, and other researchers are part 21 of the New Carbon Economy Consortium launched by the 22 Center for Carbon Removal, a partnership of research 23 institutions with the goal of removing carbon dioxide 24 from the atmosphere and converting it into valuable 25 products and services; and 26 WHEREAS, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources 27 has successfully led an interagency, public-private 28 stakeholder group to coordinate development of efforts 29 to reduce carbon emissions in Iowa and regionally in 30 -4- LSB 5107YH (5) 88 js/rn 4/ 5

H.R. 111 accordance with the federal Clean Power Plan; and 1 WHEREAS, as elected officials representing 2 legislative districts, members of the House of 3 Representatives are willing to convene constituents and 4 stakeholders to collaborate locally and are willing 5 to partner with the executive branch to make the Iowa 6 Energy Plan a reality, thereby helping Iowa do its 7 part to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement; NOW 8 THEREFORE, 9 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 10 That the House of Representatives urges Governor 11 Kim Reynolds to take all necessary actions for the 12 State of Iowa to become a member of, participate in, 13 and maintain membership in the United States Climate 14 Alliance. 15 -5- LSB 5107YH (5) 88 js/rn 5/ 5