Climate Ride

Now’s your chance to enjoy an incredible bike ride, meet some amazing people, and support 350.org all in one go! Climate Ride is happening this September 21-25, and it’s not too late to sign up.

Click here for more info and to sign up to ride.

Climate Ride is a 300-mile bicycle journey to raise money for groups working to solve the climate crisis, including 350.org.

The ride connects New York and Washington, DC. Along the way, you’ll pass through green rolling countryside, historic towns, Pennsylvania‘s Amish Country, the beautiful Delaware River Valley, and more, before arriving to a rally and hero’s welcome on the steps of the Capitol.

Not bad, right? The ride is also fully supported by the awesome Climate Ride team (they even carry your gear). Along the way you get to hear from a series of great speakers on topics related to sustainability, and hang out with a bunch of other cool folks dedicated to fighting climate change.

When I did Climate Ride, I’d never done a long ride before. I didn’t know if I could do it, but in the end, riding on country roads with the sun beating down, I was reminded what a sweet planet this is, and how much I’d love my kids and their grandchildren to be able to enjoy it in the same way I can.

To participate in Climate Ride, you’ll have to do a bit of fundraising — but that’s part of the fun, too. The donations you raise will support 350.org’s divestment campaign, our continued fight against the Keystone XL pipeline, and our global work to train the next generation of climate leaders.

I hope you’ll consider riding for us this year. It’s really an experience not to be missed.

Spots are filling up quickly. Hurry and sign up today!

Visit The Sustainable Action Network

Related articles

• Meet Team LACBC Climate Rider Laurie Gelardi (lacbc.wordpress.com)
• OFA Talking Points Caution Members On Keystone (huffingtonpost.com)
• McKibben’s Divestment Tour (counterpunch.org)
• Obama’s OFA refusing to help on Keystone Pipeline (americablog.com)
• Burning Tar Sands = ‘Unsolvable’ Climate Crisis: Hansen (commondreams.org)
• Earth Day Event on LI: Movie in Patchogue (onthewilderside.com)
• Zen and the Art of the Climate Ride (noimpactman.typepad.com)
• Divestment Calls Grow: ‘Take Our Planet, and We’ll Take Your Money’ (commondreams.org)
• Meet Team LACBC Climate Rider Michael Rippens (lacbc.wordpress.com)
• Ride to Washington (outsideonline.com)

Think Progress: 5 Major Scandals The Media Isn’t Obsessing About

This week, the national media has focused on the three different scandals surrounding the White House, devoting hours of coverage to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) improperly targeting conservative groups applying for tax exempt status, the talking points Susan Rice used in the aftermath of the attacks in Benghazi, and the Justice Department’s subpoena of phone records from the Associated Press as part of an investigation into a national security leak. The around-the-clock coverage comes even as a new Gallup poll finds that interest in the ongoing controversies is “lower comparable to major news stores in the past.”

And while these stories raise serious concerns about money in politics, embassy security, and freedom of the press, they aren’t the only problems impacting the American people. Here are five big stories the media isn’t obsessing about:

1. Carbon pollution reaches historic highs, threatening human existence. The concentration of climate warming carbon dioxide in the atmosphere “has passed the milestone level of 400 parts per million (ppm),” scientists estimate. “At the beginning of industrialisation the concentration of CO2 was just 280ppm,” said Prof Rajendra Pachauri, chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. “We must hope that the world crossing this milestone will bring about awareness of the scientific reality of climate change and how human society should deal with the challenge.” The last time the Earth saw carbon dioxide levels that high, humans did not exist. The West Antarctic ice sheet also did not exist, and sea levels were as much as 82 feet higher than they are today. During an earlier period when CO2 levels were this high, temperatures were 5° to 10°F warmer globally.

2. The devastating impact of sequestration on kids, cancer patients and first responders. On Tuesday, the Congressional Budget Office reported that the budget deficit will shrink to its smallest level since before the Great Recession in 2013, and it will continue to decrease through 2015. But despite the smaller deficits, Republicans remain focused on spending reductions — even as the most recent round of cuts has kicked children out of preschool, left cancer patientswithout needed screenings, undermined public health and fire safety, and gutted programs that help low-income Americans in a variety of ways. Those cuts have also threatened to derail the economic recovery, which has sputtered along despite the headwinds created by a consistent focus on deficit reduction.

3. Massive cuts to food stamps for the most vulnerable Americans. The House Agriculture Committee approved a farm bill late Wednesday night that would cut federal food stamps by $20.5 billion — more steeply than any legislation since the welfare reforms of the 1990s. Earlier this week, the Senate Agriculture Committee also agreed to a $4.1 billion reduction. The program keeps hundreds of thousands of vulnerable Americans out of the deepest pits of poverty, and even as the Great Recession swelled SNAP rolls, the program continued to push its erroneous payments rates to record lows.

4. 1100 workers die in garment factory collapse in Bangladesh and most American retailers plan business as usual. Since a factory collapsed in Bangladesh, killing 1,100 clothing industry workers, American retailers have been hesitant to adopt safety plans that could prevent similar tragedies. Abercrombie & Fitch announced it would sign a safety upgrade plan that has been approved by six major European retailers and one other American company, but many other manufacturers — including Walmart and Gap — are holding out. Although some retailers fear the costs of upgrades, they could pass them on entirely to consumers and only raise prices by10 cents per garment.

5. 4,000 gun deaths due to gun violence since Newtown. A crowdsourced effort to count every person killed by a gun in the United States since the Newtown tragedy is currently being hosted by Slate. As of this writing, the count is 4,150. The Senate rejected gun safety legislation in April and has not yet set a date for reconsidering the measure.

Visit The Sustainable Action Network

Related articles

• How the Great Recession Has Affected Americans (creditloan.com)
• Not much climate change doubt in science (stuff.co.nz)
• Climate change: swift political action can avert a carbon dioxide crisis (guardian.co.uk)
• Heat-Trapping Gas Passes Milestone, Raising Fears (shalejustice.wordpress.com)
• We’ve Hit the Carbon Level We Were Warned About. Here’s What That Means. (motherjones.com)
• Farm Bill Approved By House Agriculture Committee, Includes Food Stamp Cuts (huffingtonpost.com)
• Save the Atmosphere from Super Pollutants (forcechange.com)
• Tom Zeller Jr.: Scientists Agree (Again): Climate Change Is Real (huffingtonpost.com)
• NASA study projects warming-driven changes in global rainfall (worldbulletin.net)
• House Panel Set To OK Cuts To $80 Billion-A-Year Food Stamp Program (washington.cbslocal.com)

The tar sands’ best friend

The biggest Keystone XL supporter of them all will be in New York on Thursday. Come join the rally outside the Canadian Prime Minister’s speech!

Stephen Harper, the Prime Minister of Canada and Big Oil‘s best friend, once said, “I don’t object to foreigners expressing their opinion, but I don’t want them to be able to hijack the process.” ^[1]

We agree — so maybe don’t ram a toxic, foreign tar sands pipeline right through the U.S.?

Prime Minister Harper will be in New York City tomorrow. Activists like you will rally outside to show Canadians how upset we are about Keystone XL and the tar sands — you should come!

American progressives aren’t the only ones upset about the tar sands — Harper’s approval rating is down to 30%. Canadian citizens know as well as we do how disastrous the Harper administration has been for the climate. If they see that his disastrous environmental policy is also an embarrassing foreign policy, it might just be the last straw. ^[2]

Can you make it? Here are the details:

WHAT: Protesting Keystone XL at Prime Minister Harper’s Speech

WHEN: Thursday, May 16, 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

WHERE: Outside the Council on Foreign Relations
Meet at the corner of E 68th St & Park Ave
New York, NY 10065 [Map]

QUESTIONS: Contact Jessica Eckdish at Jessica.eckdish@sierraclub.org or 202-548-4598

We’re teaming up with our friends and allies at CREDO, 350.org, Friends of the Earth, various local groups, and more for this critical event. So many Canadians, from environmental non-profits to First Nation tribal leaders, have been on the forefront of the movement to stop the tar sands — let’s let them know we’ve got their backs.

Now more than ever, you’ve got to raise your voice — when else will we have this kind of opportunity to show Keystone XL’s biggest supporter how badly his oily policies are harming his country’s reputation?

This is our moment to show Canada how awful the tar sands truly are for our relationship. Sign up to rally outside the Prime Minister’s speech in New York!

Visit The Sustainable Action Network

Related articles

• Suburban Tar Sands Spill Warns of What’s to Come (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Academics warn Canada against further tar sands production (guardian.co.uk)
• Keystone XL Letter to the Editor (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Tar Sands Solutions Network launches oil sands news aggregation site (vancouverobserver.com)
• Official: Keystone XL Decision Not Expected Soon (huffingtonpost.com)
• Stephen Harper heads to New York to sell Keystone XL (canada.com)
• Harper to Visit New York in Push for Keystone Approval (bloomberg.com)
• IHT Rendezvous: Is Canada’s Oil Too Dirty for Europe? (rendezvous.blogs.nytimes.com)
• Top Democratic Donors Exhort President Obama to Reject Keystone Pipeline (sustainablebusiness.com)
• Tell Secretary Kerry to learn from the latest tar sands spill (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)

Summer Heat

For the last two years, all across the country, people have said the same thing to us: “We’re ready to fight.”

And as the planet lurches past 400 parts per million concentrations of CO2, the moment has come, the moment to ask you to do hard, important, powerful things. The last two weeks of July are, statistically, the hottest stretch of the year. This year we want to make them politically hot too. Which means we need you, out on the front line. We need some of you to risk going to jail, and all of you to show up and speak out. And since it’s a hard thing to ask, this letter is going to be a little longer than usual. (If you want to cut to the chase, though, the list of actions can be found here.)

We’re calling this next phase of the fight “Summer Heat.” Over the course of the final weeks of July, from the Pacific Northwest to the coast of Maine, from the Keystone pipeline route to the White House where the administration has broken its promise to put solar on the roof, to the Utah desert where they’re getting ready for the first tar sands mine in the US, we’re going to try and get across the essential message: it’s time to stand up – peacefully but firmly — to the industry that is wrecking our future. Click here to make your stand: joinsummerheat.org/map

We believe that mass action can breathe life into even the most hardened political fights, and so these actions will all aim to bring together thousands of people to stand together — perhaps sometimes on the wrong side of the law.

For people on the front lines of fossil fuel extraction, these fights are often, properly, about the local immediate impacts. And now all of us us, even those fortunate enough to live without that daily trauma, need to add the weight of our anger and hope as well. It’s one big fight. Front-line communities need and deserve reinforcements, pouring in to help the people who have been carrying these struggles as they begin to impact us all.

It won’t be just July, of course. In June friends are organizing “Fearless Summer” protests at mining and drilling sites around the country. In Canada, First Nations connected to the Idle No More movement are hatching plans for a “Sovereignty Summer” which could see“coordinated nonviolent direct actions” on Indigenous lands that are in the midst of fierce anti-extraction battles. meanwhile, our colleagues at CREDO continue to collect names pledged to civil disobedience should Keystone XL move forward. But Summer Heat will be a powerful focus — a chance for thousands of us to show the courage we need to lower the temperature.

We’ve got to go on offense elsewhere, and in the last few months young people have been showing us how. The rapid spread of the divestment movement across college campuses should provide courage to everyone: we got goose bumps when the students at Rhode Island School of Design, occupying their president’s office last week to demand divestment, lowered a banner out the window: “We May Be Art Students, But We Can Still do the Math.”

Look – this movement isn’t made up of professional protesters. For the most part, it’s students, teachers, retired people, civil servants, farmers, businesswomen, fisher folk, artists, mailmen, ministers. It’s people whose homes were demolished by Hurricane Sandy, or who just had an oil pipeline burst in their backyard.

Just the other day Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson went on TV and declared: “My philosophy is to make money.” And he lives that philosophy by compromising the future of the earth. And so those of us who have a more complicated philosophy need to stand up. We can’t outspend him, but we have other currencies to work in: passion, creativity, spirit. And sometimes we have to spend our bodies.

Here’s how it works. This is a list of the actions planned so far. A few more may be added in the weeks ahead as we keep working with allies. Find the one nearest you. Start making plans to show up. Be there when the time comes.

We’ll have people there to train for the actions — in every case there will be options for people who don’t want to risk arrest, but if you’re ready to take it to the next level, there will be lawyers and such on hand to help. This will be peaceful, dignified, but firm. We’re serious.

Our hope is that this summer will be a historic show of solidarity not just with the Americans who suffer most from the fossil fuel industry, but with the people across the planet whose lives are at risk as the world warms — and indeed with the planet itself, beleaguered but still so worth fighting for.

If you weren’t needed, we wouldn’t ask. But in a fight this big, we are all needed, now more than ever.

Visit The Sustainable Action Network

Related articles

• Top Democratic Donors Exhort President Obama to Reject Keystone Pipeline (sustainablebusiness.com)
• Indigenous resistance grows strong in Keystone XL battle (climate-connections.org)
• The Fossil Fuel Resistance (readersupportednews.org)
• Indigenous resistance grows strong in Keystone XL pipeline battle (canadapetrostate.wordpress.com)
• Green Mountain College to divest from fossil fuels (vtdigger.org)
• The Fossil Fuel Resistance (leaksource.wordpress.com)
• Activists threaten massive protests against Keystone XL (fuelfix.com)
• The giants of the green world that profit from the planet’s destruction | Naomi Klein (guardian.co.uk)
• Keystone XL pipeline opponents see double standard (journalstar.com)
• FOCUS | Green Giants Profit From the Planet’s Destruction (readersupportednews.org)

Tonight’s policy briefing; RSVP Now!

Tonight’s policy briefing is a little bit different than previous weeks — and I think you’ll really like it.

You’ll get a chance to hear from each of OFA‘s issue campaign managers on where we stand, and look at the path forward.

Emmy Ruiz will update you on where our fight for comprehensive immigration reform is at as the Senate begins to consider the bill.

Tomorrow, we’ll be delivering our petition to Congress demanding action to reduce gun violence (with more than 1.4 million signatures on it!) — and Kelly Byrne will fill you in tonight on where we go from there.

And since we’ve just launched our campaign to change the conversation and make real progress to combat climate change, Jack Shapiro will explain what our goals are and how we’re going to get it done.

RSVP here and join us at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time tonight:

http://my.barackobama.com/Wednesday-Policy-Briefing-RSVP

All three will be able to answer questions — just email questions@barackobama.com and let us know what you want to know.

Related articles

• Don’t be an Oaf…Sign onto OFA (terrortrials.blogspot.com)
• Obama Email: NRA Doesn’t Represent ‘Real Americans’ (pjmedia.com)
• Organizing for Immigration Reform (ncrenegade.com)
• OFA collects 1.4 million email ‘signatures’ in favor of expanded background checks (twitchy.com)
• ‘Barack Obama’ promises to keep fighting for gun control on behalf of the 90 percent (twitchy.com)
• Celebrating The State Run Media (onlygunsandmoney.blogspot.com)
• Obama’s top-down grassroots army (politico.com)
• OFA’s first quarter haul: $4.8 million (politico.com)
• Politico: OFA flops on first campaign (hotair.com)
• Organizing for Action, Fundraising Off Gun Control Again (nationalreview.com)

Sustainable Sunday’s: A Decision With Dire Consequences, Do Fracking and National Parks Mix? Balancing Energy Needs on Public Lands, Pacific Bluefin Tuna Need Protection Now, New Animal Protection Initiative Launches in New York!, A Month of Action Against Keystone XL — Join Us, Be a Voice for New York’s Animals, Into The Wild & a Victory for Sea Turtles!, FEATURED PARK: Kobuk Valley National Park, Alaska, Sizzling Cinco de Mayo Recipes, ASPCA Pet of the Week: Spike

Sustainable Sundays Weekly E-Newsletter for the Sustainable Action Network (SAN) April 14, 2013 A Decision With Dire Consequences Do Fracking and National Parks Mix? Balancing Energy Needs on Public Lands Pacific Bluefin Tuna Need Protection Now New Animal Protection Initiative Launches in New York! A Month of Action Against Keystone XL — Join Us Be a Voice for New York’s Animals Into The Wild & a Victory for Sea Turtles! FEATURED PARK: Kobuk Valley National Park, AlaskaSizzling Cinco de Mayo Recipes Cinco de Mayo Recipes ASPCA Pet of the Week: Spike A Decision With Dire Consequences Just last week, Defenders learned that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service may be moving forward with their proposal to remove all Endangered Species Act protections for most of the gray wolves across America. This one decision could forever change the future of gray wolf conservation and set a catastrophic precedent for prematurely delisting species that haven’t yet fully recovered. Please send a message to Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell — demand that gray wolves retain the federal protection they need to ensure their recovery in the wild. » Visit The Sustainable Action Network. Do Fracking and National Parks Mix? Balancing Energy Needs on Public Lands Last month, NPCA released its new report, National Parks and Hydraulic Fracturing: Balancing Energy Needs, Nature, and America’s National Heritage, which examines the impact of existing, proposed, and potential oil and gas development on America’s national parks and offers recommendations to ensure that future drilling safeguards public health and the environment. With five in-depth case studies, the report connects the dots on how oil and gas fracking on lands adjacent to national parks can impact wildlife and resources inside the parks themselves. View Our Interactive Map »       Read the Report » Visit The Sustainable Action Network. Pacific Bluefin Tuna Need Protection Now Pacific bluefin tuna have been overfished for decades, with little or no management, and the species has declined to dangerously low levels. Scientists estimate that the population of this majestic fish has dropped by 96.4 percent since fishing started, leaving the population at just 3.6 percent of its original levels. There is hope, however, if the regional fisheries management organizations responsible for Pacific bluefin fisheries take immediate action to reverse the steep population decline. Read Pew’s recommendations for the management of Pacific bluefin tuna » New Animal Protection Initiative Launches in New York! Great news! This week New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced the creation of the Animal Protection Initiative, a new program that will use civil and criminal remedies to target allegations of animal cruelty and unscrupulous sales of animals in New York. Visit The Sustainable Action Network.   A Month of Action Against Keystone XL — Join Us If we’re going to stop the Keystone XL pipeline and the destruction it’ll bring to our wildlife and climate, we must make our opposition impossible to ignore. So the Center for Biological Diversity is launching a month of action against Keystone, and we need your help. Protests can come in almost any form, big or small, as long as they’re visible. Put a sign up in your car windshield or on your lawn; gather your friends and stage a protest in your hometown; host a teach-in at a local park or do a polar bear protest on your college campus. We’re making it easy for you — check out our new Web page, NoKeystone.org, where you’ll find printable protest signs and polar bear masks, an easy-to-print factsheet and copies of our anti-Keystone pledge for you and your friends to sign. Anyone can take part in the month of action – sign up now to get involved. We’re also taking this protest to Facebook. For the month of May, we’re asking our activists to switch their profile photo to our “No Keystone” icon. Thanks for standing with us. Visit The Sustainable Action Network. Be a Voice for New York’s Animals Please join the ASPCA, the New York State Animal Protection Federation, the Mohawk Hudson Humane Society and fellow animal lovers on Monday, May 6, in Albany for New York Voices for Animals Lobby Day! This is an exciting opportunity to let your state lawmakers know, in person, that you support animal protection and oppose laws that would allow animals to be hurt and exploited. During Lobby Day, you and other animal advocates will be the voices for animals in your state. New York Voices for Animals Lobby Day provides animal advocates with a structured, comfortable setting in which to meet their elected officials. We’ll organize and help prepare you for these meetings with insider tips and an overview of pending or upcoming legislation that directly impacts animals. Legislative topics will likely include: Cracking down on puppy mills Dog control officer training Strengthening cruelty penalties Stopping dog breed-specific insurance policy discrimination This event is critical to our lobbying efforts and to preventing animal cruelty. It’s also a great networking activity, and is invigorating, inspiring and very personally rewarding. Don’t miss out! RSVP today. New York Voices for Animals Lobby Day 2013   Date: Monday, May 6, 2013 Time: 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. Place: Legislative Office Building (in the Well) 198 State Street Albany, NY 12210 Cost: None! You must register by April 29 if you plan to attend. Visit The Sustainable Action Network Into The Wild & a Victory for Sea Turtles! After more than a decade of fighting for new protections, sea turtles and their hatchlings are now much safer on Mexican’s beaches. Learn more about this important victory for sea turtles! »  Earlier this month, one of Defenders’ Florida staff members had the unique opportunity to witness an endangered Florida panther released back into the wild. Learn more about her awe-inspiring experience »  Take Action » FEATURED PARK: Kobuk Valley National Park, Alaska    Experience the Arctic Circle on American soil at Kobuk Valley National Park—one of the most remote places in the park system. With no roads or facilities of any kind within the park, traveling here requires special planning and advanced backcountry experience—but the rewards are literally huge. See vast, pristine, awe-inspiring landscapes without another soul in sight, not counting the thousands of caribou! View the Slideshow »        Learn More » Sizzling Cinco de Mayo Recipes Stock up on cilantro, limes, and jalapeño peppers because we’ve got a variety of mouthwatering vegan Mexican recipes for the perfect Cinco de Mayo celebration! CHECK OUT OUR RECIPES. ASPCA Pet of the Week: Spike Spike loves all people, other dogs and a good play session with his people. He’s a staff favorite who’s been with us for a very long time and really needs a family of his own. Find out why you should adopt Spike today! Visit The Sustainable Action Network   Sustainable Action Network - Sunset Daily Blog   Sunset Records - Sunset Urban - Tropical Records - Sunset Connect Sunset Records Soundtracks - Sunset Strategic Marketing (SSM) Sunset Classics & Sunset Jazz Recordings (SC&J) - S2e TV - Sunset Films Sustainable Action Network - Sunset Daily Blog

Related articles

• Sustainable Sundays: EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeline Company, Calif. Bill Would Ban Lead Hunting Ammo – Take Action, Bills Seek to Halt Calif. Fracking to Protect Water, Air and Climate, Tell Senators to Reject Keyston (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Sustainable Sundays: Fracking Win: On Sunday, April 21st – what we’re calling “Earth Night” – 350.org will premiere a film about our work and our growing movement., Animal Fighting Bill Introduced in U.S. Senate – Take Action!, Court Says Feds Ignored Envir (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Keystone XL Letter to the Editor (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Sustainable Sundays: Three U.S. Turtles Win International Protection, Tell Senators to Reject Keystone XL – Take Action, Simulators Replace Live Pigs in Tulane Trauma Training, Tar Sands Pipeline Gets Whitewashed, World Fails to Ban Trade in Polar Bear Pa (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Sustainable Sundays Presents: Pipeline Spill Another Ugly Reminder of Keystone’s Dangers, Renowned Climatologist Retires From NASA to Fight Global Warming, Update: Charges Filed in Three-State Dog Fighting Raid, EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Tie (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• New York Times urges Obama to reject Keystone XL pipeline (canadapetrostate.wordpress.com)
• Stand With Us Against Keystone XL – Take the Pledge – Nebraska Mascot did – Frostpaw Joins Protests at Nebraska Keystone Hearing (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Ecosocialist Conference moves toward a united green left in North America (climateandcapitalism.com)
• Alberta lobbies for Keystone XL in New York Times ad (democraticunderground.com)
• Help Support the Kickstarter campaign for Keystone XL Documentary! (ecobooks4kids.wordpress.com)

We have moved Offices This Week to the rock…Please update your records accordingly…all distributed labels and all of the Sunset/S2e Companies have moved this week to:

Sunset Distribution Company an S2e Company
45 Rockefeller Plaza, Suite 2000
New York, NY 10111
Same Phone: 646.670.8589

New Address for Sunset:

Sunset Distribution Company an S2e Company
45 Rockefeller Plaza, Suite 2000
New York, NY 10111
Same Phone: 646.670.8589

Your Weekly Democracy Now! Wrap Up at S2e TV!

Democracy Now! Friday, May 3, 2013

Democracy Now! Thursday, May 2, 2013

Democracy Now! Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Democracy Now! Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Democracy Now! Monday, April 29, 2013

Watch them all at S2e TV! 

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• Gang Stalking is COINTELPRO which is STASI Decomposition (lissakr11humane.com)
• Al Gore: Our democracy has been “hacked” (beaumontenterprise.com)
• Democracy Now!: “Love Has No Color”: Georgia High School Students Set to Hold First Integrated Prom (huffingtonpost.com)
• Give Democracy a Chance (blogs4victory.wordpress.com)
• After unsafe Factory kills 400 in Bangladesh, on May Day workers Demand Rights (Democracy Now!) (juancole.com)
• Scytl acquires Gov2U´s software division expanding its eDemocracy solutions portfolio (prweb.com)
• How the Pentagon used video games to spy on users worldwide [Mark Mazzetti @ DemocracyNow!] (disclose.tv)
• The Nature of Democracy? (contrariangazette.wordpress.com)

Keystone XL Letter to the Editor

million comments!  That’s how many we sent to President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry, asking them to reject the dirty, dangerous Keystone XL tar sands pipeline.

You, and 550 others across the nation, said you are willing to also send in a letter to the editor to your local paper about Keystone! Thank you!

Now that the official public comment period is over, and it is essential that we keep up the pressure by voicing our concerns about Keystone XL in local media!  Write a letter to your local newspaper to tell President Obama that instead of building more toxic tar sands oil pipelines that put Americans at the risk of disastrous spills, we need to move beyond oil and invest in homegrown clean energy and efficiency.

Click here for sample letters to the editor – use one one or use them to draft your own letter.

Click here for a list of top newspapers in your state, and instructions to submit your Letters to the Editor via email or web page. You can also use an Internet Search to look up another local town or county newspaper, and submit a Letter to the Editor to them, too.

After you submit your Letter to the Editor, please send an email to media.assistant@sierraclub.org to let them know.  

From the Albuquerque Journal to the Des Moines Register, from the Boston Globe to the Houston Chronicle, and in all the newspapers that are writing about the Keystone XL pipeline, we need to make our voices heard!

The best Letters to the Editor are short (approximately 200 words), reference a local or recent event or news coverage, and infuse personal values/beliefs/emotions to explain why you care about the Keystone XL pipeline, clean energy, and climate disruption. Click here for more tips on Writing Letters to the Editor.

Help combat the public relations “spin” of TransCanada, and spread the word that Americans need clean energy sources that don’t spill, pollute or explode — and we definitely don’t need another tar sands pipeline! Submit your letter to your local newspaper today.

Visit The Sustainable Action Network.

Related articles

• For Earth Day, Tell President Obama to Reject the Keystone XL Pipeline (inhabitat.com)
• New York Times urges Obama to reject Keystone XL pipeline (canadapetrostate.wordpress.com)
• US Has the Facts It Needs to Approve Keystone Pipeline – Bloomberg (bloomberg.com)
• EPA again raising concerns over proposed Keystone XL pipeline (omaha.com)
• Activists protest Valero’s support of Keystone XL pipeline (mysanantonio.com)
• EPA once again criticizes State Department’s review of Keystone XL pipeline (globalnews.ca)
• Obama: Keystone XL pipeline not major jobs creator (cnsnews.com)
• Two Protesters Lock Themselves to Heavy Machinery to Stop Construction KXL Pipeline (yubanet.com)
• EPA Trashes State Department’s Dubious Evaluation Of Keystone XL (canadapetrostate.wordpress.com)
• EPA criticizes environmental review of Keystone XL pipeline (latimes.com)

Join the Action to Stop Keystone

It’s time to say “No Keystone XL!”

Stop Keystone: Join the Month of Action

This May the Center for Biological Diversity is hosting a whole month of action to stop this disastrous tar-sands pipeline from going forward. We’re asking people around the country to make their voices heard — and we need your help.

We started with our Keystone pledge to mobilize against the destructive pipeline, and more than 24,000 people have already signed. This first step gets you linked into our campaign to halt Keystone XL — because we have to do more than sign petitions and submit comments (though those are important too). Will you sign our pledge?

Now we’re launching a whole month of action. We’re going to pack May with actions large and small to take this fight to the streets across the country and raise awareness about the dirty truth about Keystone — from posting a sign in your yard to organizing a gathering at your school, park or local governmnet’s offices to spread the word and say “No Keystone XL.” The Center will stand by you each step of the way to make that happen.

Sign up now to join our May month of action to stop Keystone.

Click here to take action and get more information. Visit The Sustainable Action Network

Related articles

• Stand With Us Against Keystone XL – Take the Pledge – Nebraska Mascot did – Frostpaw Joins Protests at Nebraska Keystone Hearing (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Suburban Tar Sands Spill Warns of What’s to Come (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Activists threaten massive protests against Keystone XL (fuelfix.com)
• Climate Activist Buries Arm in Concrete Block to Halt Keystone XL (commondreams.org)
• The “Red River Showdown” Continues! – Blockader Encases Arm in Concrete and Shuts Down Work on KXL (tarsandsblockade.org)
• Houston’s Most Polluted Neighborhood Draws the Line at Alberta Tar Sands (yesmagazine.org)
• Oil from proposed Keystone pipeline could end up exported (sacbee.com)
• Keystone XL Pipeline (emilyjuddd.wordpress.com)
• “Protester Blocks Keystone XL’s Path in Southern Oklahoma” (stateimpact.npr.org)
• More Than One Million Comments Urge Obama Administration to Reject Keystone XL (ecowatch.com)

11 Cities Added

Exciting news: today, we’re partnering with the City of Seattle and the Mayors Innovation Project to announce that eleven cities have committed to pursue fossil fuel divestment!

Can you take a minute to click on the image below to share the news on social media?

Click to share this image on Facebook

Let’s be clear: our work in these cities isn’t over. We’ll need to follow-up with these Mayors to make sure that they really keep their city funds out of fossil fuel stocks and push the pensions that provide for their employees to also divest. But today is a big step forward.

The cities committing to divestment today extend coast to coast. From tiny Bayfield, Wisconsin, which has just 530 residents, to international icons, like the City of San Francisco, where the Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on Tuesday to push the city’s retirement fund to divest $583 million from the fossil fuel industry.

In Richmond, CA, Mayor McLaughlin is committing to divestment because she’s sick of seeing the health and safety of her community put at risk by the giant Chevron refinery on the edge of the city.

In Ithaca, NY, 26-year old Mayor Svante Myrick, one of the country’s youngest mayors and youngest African-American politicians, committed to divestment earlier this week after meeting with a group of high school students who asked him to protect their shared future.

Click here to help spread the news.

Today’s announcement sends a powerful message to the fossil fuel industry: if you’re going to try and take away our planet, we’re going to try and take away your money. We’re no longer just playing defense against dirty projects like the Keystone XL pipeline, we’re going on offense, too.

It also sends an equally important message to other cities and institutions: if it’s wrong to wreck the planet, then it’s also wrong to profit from that wreckage. And with some of the most innovative cities in the country now firmly on board with this campaign, there should be no excuse for college trustees or other cities to keep dragging their feet on divestment.

Together, we kicked off this divestment campaign last fall and have spread it across the nation to over 300 colleges and universities. Now, the effort is moving off campus: there are over 100 petitions up on the GoFossilFree.org website targeting cities, states, and religious institutions. If you haven’t already started or signed a petition, now is the time.

Click here to find or start a fossil fuel divestment campaign in your community.

If you’re already running a local divestment campaign, now’s a great time to use the excitement of today’s announcement to spread your petition far and wide. You can find the petition you created by clicking on the link above.

When we started this effort, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who won a Nobel Peace Prize for his role in helping end apartheid in South Africa, told us this:

“The divestment movement played a key role in helping liberate South Africa. The corporations understood the logics of money even when they weren’t swayed by the dictates of morality. Climate change is a deeply moral issue too, of course…Once again, we can join together as a world and put pressure where it counts.”

With today’s announcement, that pressure is coming to bear in powerful ways. It’s still too early to tell if this new divestment movement will have the political impact necessary to weaken the stranglehold the fossil fuel industry has over our government, but thanks to your hard work, we’re off to an incredible start.

If you haven’t already joined in this effort, visit gofossilfree.org to get started.

Many, many thanks,

PS. If you’re a student divestment campaigner, don’t forget: we’re having a national strategy chat at 6:00 PDT/9:00 EDT tonight. Click here to join in.

Visit The Sustainable Action Network

Related articles

• State College mayor urges fossil fuel divestment (sfgate.com)
• Divestment Calls Grow: ‘Take Our Planet, and We’ll Take Your Money’ (commondreams.org)
• State College mayor urges fossil fuel divestment (mysanantonio.com)
• Soglin joins other mayors in push to divest fossil fuel holdings (host.madison.com)
• Can a divestment campaign move the fossil fuel industry? (guardian.co.uk)
• San Francisco and Seattle lead US cities pulling funds from fossil fuel firms (guardian.co.uk)
• Resolution urging fossil fuel divestment passes (sfgate.com)
• The reasoning behind divestment (resilience.org)
• Do The Math Movie (sustainabilityhub.com)
• San Francisco Board of Supervisors to Vote Tomorrow on Divesting $500 million from Fossil Fuels (svenworld.com)

The Bush Lie Bury opens tomorrow…Although, they do have an exhibit that lets everyone choose some of that platforms and (suspect) decisions he made while in office….

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I feel worse about making these claims on Bush for some reason these days, and I wish we could shift what is said here by the Roots Action team….directly to (Dick) Cheney but anyway….a half-billion dollar George W. Bush Library is being dedicated in Dallas with help from four other current or former U.S. presidents.

Protesters of this Bush Lie Bury — this burying of a lying leader’s record with a lying version of history — believe Bush should be facing criminal prosecution instead.

Join us in urging the U.S. Department of Justice to act by clicking here.

We don’t need vengeance, but deterrence.  Warrantless spying, imprisonment without trial, secret prisons, assassinations, and illegal wars didn’t end with Bush’s presidency — because he’s only been rewarded, never punished.

A new report last week on Bush-authorized torture has helped to reawaken awareness.  But we knew Bush tortured.  He confessed as much on television.  We don’t so much need to know what was done as we need to know that those who do such things will be held accountable.*

We’ve tried “looking forward not back” for five years.  It hasn’t worked.  Crimes in the future cannot be prosecuted in anticipation.  Only crimes in the past can be brought to account.  And only when those in power are subject to the rule of law can we avoid the catastrophes inevitably brought on by the law of rulers.

Contact the Justice Department now!

Please forward this email widely to like-minded friends.

– The RootsAction.org team

*Laws clearly violated by George W. Bush include, among many others: The U.S. Constitution Article I, Sections 8, 9, Article II, Sections 1, 3, Article VI, and the Fourth and Fifth Amendments, the prohibition on covert propaganda, Title 2 U.S. Code Section 194, Title 18 U.S. Code Sections 4, 371, 1341, 1346, 1385, 2340A, 2441, The War Powers Act, the United Nations Charter Chapter 1 Article 2 Section 3, the Kellogg-Briand Pact, the Hague Convention of 1899, Joint Resolution 114 Section 3, Additional Protocol I to Geneva Conventions, the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2008 Section 1222, the Fourth Geneva Convention, the Third Geneva Convention, the International Covenant on Human Rights Articles 7, 10, the Convention Against Torture, the Optional Protocol to the Fourth Geneva Convention on Rights of the Child, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, the Voting Rights Act, and the Stored Communications Act.

Background:
The People’s Response to the George W. Bush Library and Policy Institute
David Swanson: “Why I’m Attending the Dedication of the Bush Lie Bury”
The 35 Articles of Impeachment and the Case for Prosecuting George W. Bush

Visit the Sustainable Action Network

Related articles

• George W. Bush library set to open at SMU (sacbee.com)
• George W. Bush Library Set to Open (politicalwire.com)
• Obama to attend George W. Bush library dedication in Texas (politico.com)
• George W. Bush Library Raised $500 Million to Open on May 1. (katenews2day.wordpress.com)
• A prominent GOP supporter of assault weapons ban, background checks? It’s George W. Bush (chron.com)
• Potential Republican Presidential Candidates for 2016 (politics.answers.com)
• Fun with George Bush (politics.answers.com)
• George W. Bush Presidential Library Set To Open May 1 (huffingtonpost.com)
• Bush Raises $500 Million For Presidential Library (fox2now.com)
• George W. Bush raises $500 million for library (upi.com)

Democracy Now! Democracy Now! Democracy Now! Highlights from the week at S2e TV and tune in at any time to view the progressive news live 24/7….

Democracy Now! Wednesday, April 24, 2013 Today Democracy Now!, a daily independent newshour

Democracy Now! Tuesday, April 23, 2013 1 day ago Democracy Now!, a daily independent newshour

Democracy Now! Monday, April 22, 2013 2 days ago Democracy Now!, a daily independent newshour

Go to S2e TV!

Don’T Forget about Todays White House Briefing…its at 8PM east coast time and anyone can join in on the important group conversation about the environment…please do join everyone and thanks fr being a part of it every Wed….!

The conversation in Washington about climate change needs to change — and OFA is going to be at the center of that effort.

The President has made historic progress tackling dangerous carbon pollution that causes global warming — but the House of Representatives has avoided discussing the science of or solutions to climate change. Since 2011, Republican leaders have denied every single request for a hearing on the issue, and a number of lawmakers have even gone on the record to deny that the science exists.

If we’re going to make a difference in tackling climate change, that sort of nonsense has to stop. You’ll hear about all that — and how OFA can help — on tonight’s policy call.

Join OFA staff and Congressman Henry Waxman, leader of the Safe Climate Caucus and a long-time champion for the environment in Congress, for a briefing tonight at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time:

http://my.barackobama.com/Wednesday-Policy-Briefing-RSVP

Just add your name and we’ll take you straight to the livestream. As always, email questions@barackobama.com and we’ll answer as many as we can.

Visit The Sustainable Action Network

Related articles

• Henry Waxman Strikes Again (moonbattery.com)
• Senator Tells Environmentalists To Make Climate Change The Next Gay Rights (huffingtonpost.com)
• Nasty ending to House Dems meeting with Obama (politico.com)
• Republicans Seize What They See as Keystone Momentum (bloomberg.com)
• Could Waxman’s New Bill Offer New Hope for a Carbon Tax? (climatedesk.org)
• WATCH: Al Franken Uses Cheetos To Criticize Climate Deniers (huffingtonpost.com)
• 2006 : Kerry/Waxman Said That Global Warming Is Going To Kill Us All (stevengoddard.wordpress.com)
• UN official hopeful about 2015 climate talks (jsonline.com)
• UN official hopeful about 2015 climate talks (thetandd.com)
• Is ‘global warming’ the right term to use? (mnn.com)

This Sunday April 28th at 10:45 AM, Bill McKibben will be delivering a guest sermon at Riverside Church in Morningside Heights, where he once worshiped.

This Sunday April 28th at 10:45 AM, Bill McKibben will be delivering a guest sermon at Riverside Church in Morningside Heights, where he once worshiped.

Following the sermon, Riverside will be hosting a forum on climate change featuring community leaders from WeAct, GreenFaith and student activists from NYC fossil fuel divestment campaigns. If you haven’t gotten a chance to see any of our local divesters in action, they are amazing — these are people you want to meet!

All are welcome, even if you’ve never worshiped at Riverside before — all the details are below.

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April 28, 2013 Bill McKibben & Climate Change Forum

On April 28, 2013, Riverside Morning Church’s guest preacher for our Sunday Morning Worship Service is renowned environmentalist, activist, author, 350.org Founder, and former Riverside member, Bill McKibben

Sermon: God’s Taunt

Scripture Lesson: Job 38: 1-11 and Matthew 19: 16-22

10:45 a.m., in the Nave of The Riverside Church

All are invited and encouraged to attend.

After Worship, Join us in South Hall for…

Community ConversationWhat Can We Do About Climate Change?Learn how YOU can make a difference and be part of this powerful movement!

1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

South Hall of Riverside Church

Featured speakers:

• Rabbi Lawrence Troster – GreenFaith
• Peggy Shepard – WE ACT
• Sophie Larissa Lassof – Student Leader, NYU Divest
• Daniel Asselin – Student Leader, CUNY Divest

Meet Leaders from 350.org, WE ACT, Sierra Club, Sane Energy Project,New Yorkers Against Fracking, United for Action, Riverside’s Beloved Earth Community, and more!

Visit The Sustainable Action Network

Related articles

• Happy Earth Day (sopranolife.wordpress.com)
• Author and environmental activist Bill McKibben to speak on climate change and coal in the Pacific Northwest (queenanneview.com)
• More Than a Pipe Dream (slate.com)
• Bill McKibben (sourcewatch.org)
• Bill McKibben: A green prophet rises to heal, cure the sinners (watchdog.org)
• Bill McKibben (sourcewatch.org)
• Harvard Embracing Fossil Fuel Condemned by Gore on Filthy Lucre (bloomberg.com)
• Mark Tercek: A Conversation With Bill McKibben (huffingtonpost.com)
• NYU Divest Meets With Senior Administrators, Calls For Climate Justice (nyulocal.com)
• McKibben’s New Rolling Stone Article – Worth a READ! (seattleenvironmentalactivists.wordpress.com)

We Do NOT need to use natural Gas; We do NOT need that Keystone Pipeline even though thats not even for us touse anyway but still, IBM Solar Collector Harnesses the Power of 2,000 Suns…check it out…its cool…But maybe this is the trade off per se…..ibm was the company that did the ticket punches during the Holicost at each train stop so we would have to forgive them for making a ton of money doing work that way…..

A team of IBM researchers is working on a solar concentrating dish that will be able to collect 80% of incoming sunlight and convert it to useful energy. The High Concentration Photovoltaic Thermal system will be able to concentrate the power of 2,000 suns while delivering fresh water and cool air wherever it is built. As an added bonus, IBM states that the system would be just one third the cost third of current comparable technologies.

Read more: IBM Solar Collector Harnesses the Power of 2,000 Suns | Inhabitat – Sustainable Design Innovation, Eco Architecture, Green Building

Visit The Sustainable Action Network

Related articles

• Photovoltaic Thermal Hybrid Solar Collectors (PVT) (evoenergy.co.uk)
• Solar Power Beyond The Rooftop: Moving To Utility-Scale (earthtechling.com)
• California Builds the World’s Tallest Solar Collector (gizmodo.com)
• Inhabitat – December 22 (academyart.edu)
• Hypersolar concentrator glass for solar collectors (soltesza.wordpress.com)
• Slowly, green buildings get footing in the UAE (eco-business.com)
• What’s New with Solar Energy? (sprayfoamdirect.com)
• How solar works (solarworld-usa.com)
• Monster Machines: The World’s Tallest Solar Collector (gizmodo.com.au)
• Striking Solar Equinox Passive House Aligns With the Sun in Bulgaria (inhabitat.com)

I just got notice that because of all of you mofos that do care…we reached over 1,000,000 signatures just yesterday or today…wow….

Great news: sometime mid-morning yesterday we reached our goal, when the millionth public comment was submitted to the State Department opposing the Keystone XL pipeline. That’s a lot.

In fact, at about the same hour the President put out an Earth Day proclamation saying “nothing is more powerful than millions of voices calling for change.” Now we have a chance to see if he means it!

The 350 team put together this graphic to celebrate the occasion and send a message to the President — can you share it around with your social networks?

Click here to share on Facebook

If you’re not on Facebook, consider forwarding this email to friends and family to share the good news.

Not long after we crossed the 1 million threshold, the EPA put out a statement that called the State Department’s first analysis of the pipline ‘insufficient,’ pointing out that they got the numbers wrong on the risk of oil spills and the climate impact of the pipeline. That’s a sure sign that the relentless pressure we’re putting on is having an impact.

All these things came the day after many of us gathered in over 1000(!) living rooms, theaters and auditoriums across the globe to watch the Do the Math Movie, which covered the growth of our movement over the past year or two.

As impressive as all that is, I’m more excited for what comes next. The fossil fuel resistance is growing, and when the heat rises this summer, we’re going to show how powerful we’ve become.

Many thanks for all you’ve done, and much more soon.

Visit the Sustainable Action Network.

Related articles

• One million plus urge end to Keystone XL sands pipeline (Photos) (examiner.com)
• EPA again raising concerns over proposed Keystone XL pipeline (omaha.com)
• Keystone XL Pipeline Issue and Earth Day lovin’ (kiravelella.wordpress.com)
• On this Earth Day, join the good fight against Keystone tar sands pipeline (cep95.wordpress.com)
• For Earth Day, Tell President Obama to Reject the Keystone XL Pipeline (inhabitat.com)
• EPA repeats Keystone XL objections (cbc.ca)
• EPA again questions Keystone XL pipeline (rapidcityjournal.com)
• EPA Again Questions Keystone XL Pipeline (kake.com)
• Oil, money and politics; EPA snags Keystone XL pipeline (cnn.com)
• [campaign] Speak out against Keystone XL pipeline (findingyourwaytowellness.com)

Suburban Tar Sands Spill Warns of What’s to Come

Earlier this month, an ExxonMobil tar sands pipeline ruptured, spewing more than 150,000 gallons of toxic crude into an Arkansas suburb and forcing homeowners to evacuate. It’s a glimpse of what lies ahead if the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline gets built. At full capacity, the Keystone XL will carry almost ten times the amount of corrosive tar sands as the pipeline that failed in Arkansas. NRDC is escalating public pressure on Secretary of State John Kerry to heed the wake-up call from Arkansas and conduct a new, truthful environmental review that tallies the real costs and dangers of the Keystone XL on our climate and communities.

Visit The Sustainable Action Network.

Related articles

• Tell Secretary Kerry to learn from the latest tar sands spill (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Nine times bigger (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• For Earth Day, Tell President Obama to Reject the Keystone XL Pipeline (inhabitat.com)
• Tell John Kerry ‘No tar sands, no KXL!’ when he visits London (sunnyromy.wordpress.com)
• Pipelines safe, Keystone XL meeting told (upi.com)
• Breaking News: Oklahoma Grandmother Locks Herself to Keystone XL Heavy Machinery – Halts Construction of Tar Sands Pipeline (climate-connections.org)
• Arkansas spill renews fears of ruptures on proposed South Dakota pipeline (rapidcityjournal.com)
• ExxonMobil Arkansas Tar Sands Pipeline Gash 22 Feet Long, Attorney General McDaniel Confirms (desmogblog.com)
• On this Earth Day, join the good fight against Keystone tar sands pipeline (cep95.wordpress.com)
• FOCUS | Tar Sands Raw Deal in Arkansas (readersupportednews.org)

Earth Day Message From The Head Of Bio Gems!

Earth Day is an occasion to remind ourselves just how far we’ve come and how very far we’ve still got to go. We can’t afford to rest on our laurels or feel powerless in the face of the daunting challenges ahead. Rather, we must take inspiration from the determination of our movement’s founding heroes — John Muir, Mardy Murie, Rachel Carson — and those who continue carrying their torch today.

I’m thinking of the brave people I met on my recent visit to communities in Pennsylvania, who are resisting an invasion of hydro-fracking. And our inspiring partners in Bristol Bay — the Yup’ik Eskimo, Aleut and Athabascan peoples — who are united in stopping the proposed Pebble Mine.

And I’m thinking of you and more than one million other NRDC online activists and Members, who time and again answer the call to protect wildlife and wildlands from those who would exploit or destroy it. I am truly honored to fight alongside you.

I know from speaking with so many of you that our one million supporters mark Earth Day in a million different ways. Some get out in nature and recharge. Some teach their children. Some volunteer on beach or river cleanups. Some plant trees. Some organize petition signings.

Many others don’t have time for any of the above and ask me what they can do from home. My suggestion is to take one online action you haven’t yet taken (this is a great week to tell Secretary of State Kerry you oppose the Keystone XL!) or take one small step to live more simply and sustainably on this planet — like composting, or switching to natural cleansers or just figuring out how to eliminate lunch box waste.

For lots of other Earth Day ideas take a minute to visit This Green Life online.

Happy Earth Day from all of us at NRDC. And thank you for making all our work in defense of nature possible.

Best wishes,

Visit The Sustainable Action Network to view all of the Bio Gems Victories on behalf of our planet.

Stand With Us Against Keystone XL — Take the Pledge – Nebraska Mascot did – Frostpaw Joins Protests at Nebraska Keystone Hearing

Stand With Us Against Keystone XL — Take the Pledge

We’ve reached a critical moment in our campaign to stop the Keystone XL pipeline — with your help, we’ve submitted comments, signed petitions and made it into a national debate. Now it’s time to take it to the streets.

This week the Center for Biological Diversity launched a new pledge for our members and activists to oppose Keystone XL, participate in public protests to do so — and, if needed, engage in peaceful acts of civil disobedience to drive our point home: No to Keystone.

Keystone XL would be a disaster for our climate and put wildlife and wild places at huge risk of spills and destruction. If we’re going to stop it, we’ve got to get to the places where we can’t be ignored: the streets, town halls, storefronts and all kinds of sites along the pipeline route.

More than 16,000 have already signed. Please — stand with us and take the Keystone pledge. We’ll be in touch in the coming weeks about how you can get involved.

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Frostpaw Joins Protests at Nebraska Keystone Hearing

Hundreds of people, including Center for Biological Diversity staff, staged a protest in Nebraska this morning outside the one and only public hearing the State Department is holding on Keystone XL. It’s clear that the opposition to Keystone is growing by leaps and bounds as people grasp the danger it poses to our climate, wildlife and wild places.

“Keystone XL is an environmental disaster waiting to happen,” said Peter Galvin, the Center’s conservation director, who attended the Nebraska protest along with Frostpaw, our polar bear mascot. “Oil spills, environmental damage, wildlife at risk and a doubling-down on climate catastrophe — there’s just no way Keystone XL is in the national interest.”

Check out our press release. Visit The Sustainable Action Network.

Related articles

• Keep Keystone XL and Coal Out of the Budget (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Green diary rescue: Stopping Keystone XL with public comments (dailykos.com)
• Opponents Rally Against Keystone XL Pipeline at State Department Hearing (ecowatch.com)
• The traditional media’s shoddy reporting on the Keystone XL pipeline is no surprise (dailykos.com)
• Pipelines safe, Keystone XL meeting told (upi.com)
• ‘Cooking the Books and the Planet’: Report Slams State Dept. KXL Findings (commondreams.org)
• Cooking the Books: State Department Ignores True Climate Impact of Keystone XL Pipeline (ecowatch.com)
• First Nation critics condemn Redford’s Keystone XL pipeline pitch (vancouverobserver.com)
• Route Change Forces Keystone Foes to Shift Aim to Climate Change (bloomberg.com)

Sustainable Sundays: Fracking Win: On Sunday, April 21st — what we’re calling “Earth Night” — 350.org will premiere a film about our work and our growing movement., Animal Fighting Bill Introduced in U.S. Senate—Take Action!, Court Says Feds Ignored Environment in Oil Leases, Wolf Weekly Wrap-up, Baltimore Becomes 54th Clean Air City, Speak Out For World Week For Animals In Laboratories, Beginning April 20, Be a Voice for New York’s Animals, FEATURED PARK: Mississippi National River and Recreation Area, Minnesota and the ASPCA Pet of the Week: Riley

Sustainable Sundays Weekly E-Newsletter for the Sustainable Action Network (SAN) April 14, 2013 Fracking Win: Court Says Feds Ignored Environment in Oil Leases Baltimore Becomes 54th Clean Air City Speak Out For World Week For Animals In Laboratories, Beginning April 20 Animal Fighting Bill Introduced in U.S. Senate—Take Action! On Sunday, April 21st — what we’re calling “Earth Night” — 350.org will premiere a film about our work and our growing movement. Be a Voice for New York’s Animals Wolf Weekly Wrap-up FEATURED PARK: Mississippi National River and Recreation Area, Minnesota ASPCA Pet of the Week: Riley Fracking Win: Court Says Feds Ignored Environment in Oil Leases A landmark victory against destructive fracking in the Golden State: This week, responding to a suit brought by the Center for Biological Diversity and partners, a federal court ruled that the Bureau of Land Management failed to fully consider the environmental risks of fracking when it issued oil leases for 2,500 acres of public land in Monterey County, Calif. “This important decision recognizes that fracking poses new, unique risks to California’s air, water and wildlife that government agencies can’t ignore,” said the Center’s Brendan Cummings, who argued the case. “This is a watershed moment — the first court opinion to find a federal lease sale invalid for failing to address the monumental dangers of fracking.” Fracking has already been used in hundreds, perhaps thousands of California oil and gas wells. It has been tied to pollution in other states and releases huge quantities of methane, a dangerously potent greenhouse gas. This decision means that, at the very least, no drilling or fracking on the Monterey County leases will be allowed without a thorough study of environmental risks. Read more in the San Francisco Chronicle. Visit The Sustainable Action Network. Baltimore Becomes 54th Clean Air City Baltimore just became the 54th community to join the Center for Biological Diversity’s Clean Air Cities campaign. On Monday its city council approved a resolution asking President Obama and the EPA to make full use of the Clean Air Act to cut carbon pollution and combat climate change. “The bad news is that Baltimore will be hit hard by climate change. We face sea-level rise, epic heat waves and a never-ending threat of extreme weather events,” said Councilmember Mary Pat Clarke, who introduced the resolution. “The good news is that we have the Clean Air Act, and if it’s employed swiftly and ambitiously, we can dramatically reduce greenhouse gas pollution and some of the worst impacts of climate change.” Read more in our press release and find out how you can make your community the next Clean Air City. Visit The Sustainable Action Network. Speak Out For World Week For Animals In Laboratories, Beginning April 20 Please join IDA during World Week for Animals in Laboratories (WWAIL), April 20 – 28, to speak out against the use of animals in testing and research. One of IDA’s priorities is to expose costly, wasteful and inhumane experiments. We released our third annual “Top Ten” most outrageous experiments on animals list, this year giving “Outragie Awards” to some of the most cruel and absurd experiments. We highlight these ten experiments which alone have cost taxpayers over $4.6 million to study such things as “child abuse” in rats, sexuality in hamsters and cochlear implants in cats. Our focus in 2013 includes opposing the continued use of animals for personal product testing in the U.S. While the European Union has implemented a ban on the sale of cosmetic products tested on animals in 2013, many U.S. companies that were formerly cruelty-free are now investing in animal tests so they can market their products overseas to countries where animal testing is required. Please commit to act for animals in laboratories during the week of WWAIL. Here are just a few options: Organize an event in your area, such as a demonstration at a university conducting animal experiments or an educational table. Email IDA to tell us if you will be planning an event, need flyers, or just need more info. Distribute our new product testing brochure, “Consumer Beware!”, at stores selling personal care products. Stay tuned to this eNews next week to learn about other ways you can help. Visit The Sustainable Action Network. Animal Fighting Bill Introduced in U.S. Senate—Take Action! We are thrilled to share with you that on Monday, Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Mark Kirk (R-IL), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), David Vitter (R-LA) introduced the Animal Fighting Spectator Prohibition Act in the U.S. Senate.. Visit The Sustainable Action Network.   On Sunday, April 21st — what we’re calling “Earth Night” — 350.org will premiere a film about our work and our growing movement. It features the big tour we did across the country last fall, and so the film is also called “Do the Math.” The trailer for the movie was just released a few minutes ago — check it out: On the night of April 21st, people will gather in hundreds of living rooms and libraries across the country for the premiere of the movie. Meeting in person is the lifeblood of our movement, and we hope that gathering to watch this snazzy film can be an opportunity to connect with new people and grow the movement locally. I’ve already had a chance to preview the movie; it is an inspiring, beautiful, and fast-paced story that shows the power of the growing climate movement. It clocks in at 42-minutes — and it packs a lot in: from the cross-country tour we did last year, to the latest dispatches from leaders in the fight to stop Keystone XL, to the campaign to divest from fossil fuels. You won’t want to miss it. Click here to watch the the trailer and join (or create!) an Earth Night gathering in your community. We also have a page that answers a lot of questions you might have about the movie — check it out here: http://www.350.org/math. Visit The Sustainable Action Network. .Be a Voice for New York’s AnimalsPlease join the ASPCA, the New York State Animal Protection Federation, the Mohawk Hudson Humane Society and fellow animal lovers on Monday, May 6, in Albany for New York Voices for Animals Lobby Day! This is an exciting opportunity to let your state lawmakers know, in person, that you support animal protection and oppose laws that would allow animals to be hurt and exploited.During Lobby Day, you and other animal advocates will be the voices for animals in your state. New York Voices for Animals Lobby Day provides animal advocates with a structured, comfortable setting in which to meet their elected officials. We’ll organize and help prepare you for these meetings with insider tips and an overview of pending or upcoming legislation that directly impacts animals. Legislative topics will likely include: Cracking down on puppy mills Dog control officer training Strengthening cruelty penalties Stopping dog breed-specific insurance policy discrimination This event is critical to our lobbying efforts and to preventing animal cruelty. It’s also a great networking activity, and is invigorating, inspiring and very personally rewarding. Don’t miss out! RSVP today. New York Voices for Animals Lobby Day 2013 Date: Monday, May 6, 2013 Time: 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. Place: Legislative Office Building (in the Well) 198 State Street Albany, NY 12210 Cost: None! You must register by April 29 if you plan to attend. Visit The Sustainable Action Network Wolf Weekly Wrap-up Legislative updates – Sometimes no news is good news, and most of the bills we’ve been following did not advance any farther. The one exception is SB 397 in Montana, which (thankfully) went down in a blaze of glory last night on a committee vote of 17-4. Earlier in the week, 26 opponents attended a House committee hearing, many of them from different hunting organizations that support fair-chase ethics and do not want to see predators carelessly slaughtered. Further opposition came from Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks representatives who said that managers already have the tools they need to keep predator and prey species in check. In fact, the only people who supported the bill were spokesmen for Montana Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife, a known anti-wolf group that has long espoused getting rid of predators by any means necessary in order to artificially boost elk and deer populations. But most Montanans know that a healthy, balanced ecosystem relies on sustainable numbers of both predator and prey. And while human hunters play a role in keeping game species in check, they are no substitute for having wolves, cougars and bears on the landscape as well. Take Action » FEATURED PARK: Mississippi National River and Recreation Area, MinnesotaThe mighty Mississippi is one of the largest and most fabled rivers in the country and home to seven national parks—but only the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area was specifically created to share the history and science of the river itself. This urban oasis has a bit of everything, from canoeing and bird-watching opportunities to military relics and historic buildings. View the Slideshow » Learn More » ASPCA Pet of the Week: Riley Those who love Abyssinians should look no further than Riley, a fun-loving and smart little lady who wants to be your only kitty. If you’re an experienced cat lover in an adults-only home, come meet Riley today in NYC. Visit The Sustainable Action Network Sustainable Action Network - Sunset Daily Blog   Sunset Records - Sunset Urban - Tropical Records - Sunset Connect Sunset Records Soundtracks - Sunset Strategic Marketing (SSM) Sunset Classics & Sunset Jazz Recordings (SC&J) - S2e TV - Sunset Films Sustainable Action Network - Sunset Daily Blog

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• Shots Fired as Law Enforcement, HSUS Raid Massive Dogfight in Mississippi (hsus.typepad.com)
• Sustainable Sundays: APRIL is Animal Cruelty Awareness month. (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Sustainable Sundays Presents: Pipeline Spill Another Ugly Reminder of Keystone’s Dangers, Renowned Climatologist Retires From NASA to Fight Global Warming, Update: Charges Filed in Three-State Dog Fighting Raid, EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Tie (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• California Dog Fighting Facts (saveanimalstoday.com)
• Sustainable Sundays: EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeline Company, Calif. Bill Would Ban Lead Hunting Ammo – Take Action, Bills Seek to Halt Calif. Fracking to Protect Water, Air and Climate, Tell Senators to Reject Keyston (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• U.S. senator requests more information regarding job creation (lexingtonlaw.com)
• Animal Match-Up (birthdayinabox.com)
• Sustainable Sundays: Sequester Cuts Threaten National Parks, Shell Pulls Out of Arctic Drilling This Summer, California’s Draft Fracking Rules Among Weakest in Nation, Think Progress’ 8 Inspiring Things That Happened Since Trayvon Martin Was Tragically Ki (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Young Calicoe’s preliminary exam in felony dogfighting case extended to April after expert testimony (mlive.com)
• Fighting Animal Cruelty (izzynconner.wordpress.com)

Day One:

10 days. That’s how long we have to flood the State Department with comments opposing Keystone XL.

For the next ten days our friends across the movement are coordinating a ‘Comment Sprint’ to submit hundreds of thousands of comments against the pipeline — hopefully hitting 1 million in total.

If you’ve already submitted a comment, keep reading: you’re able to submit more than one, and in fact, you should. We want to show that people are opposed to the pipeline for many reasons, all of them grounded in hard facts, so every day for ten days, we’ll focus on a new reason to oppose the pipeline and submit new comments.

The State Department’s review has been heavy on politics and light on science, so the more we focus on the facts, the stronger our case to the President and the public will be to stop the pipeline.

The first day of the comment sprint is today. The first issue we’re focusing on is how the pipeline undermines energy security. We need to clear about one thing: TransCanada wants this pipeline so they can get tar sands oil to export.

President Obama’s job is to decide whether the pipeline is in the US national interest. TransCanada has shown that it’s not. In filings to the State Department and contracts with refiners, they’ve spelled out their plans to pad their profits by exporting it to the international market where it will fetch a higher price — putting more money in the pockets of big oil and accelerating tar sands development in Canada.

Can you submit a comment to the President and State Department explaining the energy security case for stopping the pipeline? Click here to submit your comment: act.350.org/letter/kxl-sprint-day-1/

To hit a million comments, it will take a lot of us pitching in in different ways. At 350, we won’t email you every day for 10 days (more likely 4 or 5), but we will use social media and other tools at our disposal to promote the push every day between now and the 22nd. In particular, we will be relying on our Social Media Team to share crucial info about each day’s issue — if you’d like to join the Team and help super-charge key content over the next ten days, click here: act.350.org/signup/social/

Keystone XL is a climate disaster, and an economic loser. If built, it would carry 800,000 barrels a day of tar sands to export for the next 50 years, leaving a toxic legacy for communities along the route, and a massive carbon footprint on the atmosphere. And we’re going to do whatever we can to stop it.

Thanks for all you’ve done, and all you will do to stop the pipeline.

Visit The Sustainable Action Network.

Related articles

• Tell Secretary Kerry to learn from the latest tar sands spill (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Keystone XL: The Pipeline to Disaster (realclearpolitics.com)
• Breaking News: Oklahoma Grandmother Locks Herself to Keystone XL Heavy Machinery – Halts Construction of Tar Sands Pipeline (climate-connections.org)
• Keystone XL Pipeline Gets Another Green Light (gielr.wordpress.com)
• Petition Circulating Against Keystone XL (personalliberty.com)
• ExxonMobil Arkansas Tar Sands Pipeline Gash 22 Feet Long, Attorney General McDaniel Confirms (desmogblog.com)
• Top 5 Reasons Transporting Tar Sands Crude is Reckless (ecowatch.com)
• Risky Intersection: Keystone XL, Pegasus Pipelines Meet At East Texas Landowner’s Doorstep (huffingtonpost.com)
• NEW TransCanada Tar Sands Pipeline (earthfirstnews.wordpress.com)
• Tar sand oil pipelines are natural disasters waiting to happen (salon.com)

It’s your move, Secretary Jewell; King Coal’s connections at the Department of the Interior (DOI) are paying off. In a big way.

The Department of the Interior has given the coal industry $30 billion in subsidies. Tell Secretary Jewell to stand for the public interest and stop giveaways to King Coal.

A federal coal leasing program run by DOI has resulted in almost $30 billion in government handouts to the coal industry. The giveaway happens through noncompetitive “auctions” where the Department sells the rights to publicly-owned coal for a fraction of what it’s worth.  

And there’s almost four billion more tons of this coal, primarily in the Powder River Basin, that DOI could give away in the coming years. Though it’s not a done deal. With newly confirmed Interior Secretary Sally Jewell taking over the Department, there’s hope.

Secretary Jewell has the power to put an end to these coal industry handouts for good. But she’s going to have to hear from the public first. Together we can make a strong impression during her first day on the job. 

Send a message now telling Secretary Jewell to put the public interest back into public lands by placing a moratorium on any new federal coal leases.

What’s worse is that the publicly-owned coal that DOI is giving away isn’t even destined for use in the United States.

With demand falling dramatically in this country, coal companies like Peabody are hoping to boost profits by exporting the dirty coal overseas and selling it in places like China – where it will be burned and continue to add global warming pollution to the atmosphere.

It’s hard to see how this is in the nation’s best interest. Which is why it’s no surprise that DOI is under three separate investigations for the program.

Tell Secretary Jewell to make one of her first actions as Secretary placing a moratorium on new coal leasing in the Powder River Basin and to initiate reforms that ensure taxpayers aren’t subsidizing coal exports and climate change.

The DOI’s coal leasing program is undermining the Obama administration’s commitment to reduce global warming pollution.

The administration can’t have it both ways. It’s impossible to fight climate change while simultaneously doubling down on the dirtiest, most carbon-intensive fossil fuels on the planet.

The truth is that if this coal is dug up and burned, we can’t save the climate. Like drilling for oil in the Arctic or the Keystone XL Pipeline, new fossil fuel projects threaten to send our climate past a point of no return.

Visit The Sustainable Action Network

Related articles

• Sally Jewell inherits a DOI with a $30 billion coal connection (greenpeaceblogs.org)
• Urge Obama To Say ‘No’ To Dirty Coal!; Stop the Coal Rush Rip Off, Start the Clean Energy Revolution (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Study: The coal industry is in far more trouble than anyone realizes (washingtonpost.com)
• New Report Questions Federal Coal Leasing Policies in the Powder River Basin (sierraclub.typepad.com)
• Will “King Coal” Benefit From Rising Natural Gas Prices? (dailyfinance.com)
• Global Coal Mining Industry Market Research Report from IBISWorld has Been Updated (prweb.com)
• Sustainable Sundays: Tell the Interior Department to Put Clean Air First (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Plans For One Coal Export Terminal In Oregon Dropped, Four Others Still Under Consideration (thinkprogress.org)
• Will “King Coal” Benefit From Rising Natural Gas Prices? (fool.com)
• From coal to solar – museums embraces new energy (evoenergy.co.uk)

 

Tell Secretary Kerry to learn from the latest tar sands spill

	An ugly warning of what’s to come The recent tar sands spill in Arkansas is a wake-up call of what the Keystone XL will bring. Tell Secretary of State Kerry to tally the true impacts of the Keystone XL!

Two weeks ago, an ExxonMobil pipeline carrying corrosive tar sands oil ruptured, spewing more than 150,000 gallons of toxic crude into an Arkansas suburb, forcing homeowners to evacuate.

It’s just a small glimpse of what we can expect if the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline gets built. At full capacity, the Keystone XL will carry almost ten times the amount of tar sands as the pipeline that failed in Arkansas.

Tell Secretary of State John Kerry that, now more than ever, he and his State Department must consider the true impacts of the Keystone XL and more tar sands development on our climate, land, air, water and communities.

We’re at a critical juncture in our campaign to stop this destructive project. Last month, I alerted you that the State Department issued a draft environmental review of the Keystone XL that was little more than a whitewash.

The Department is now inviting citizen comments on that flawed assessment until April 22.

We must generate a record number of comments, demanding that Secretary Kerry go back to the drawing board and reveal the true environmental costs of the Keystone XL and more tar sands development.

This pipeline would transport a river of the most destructive oil on the planet straight through America’s heartland to the Gulf Coast for export. It would threaten countless communities along its route with the kind of spills we witnessed in Arkansas — and drive more climate havoc that endangers all of us.

Producing tar sands oil causes far more global warming pollution than regular crude oil production — and its chemical properties increase the likelihood of pipeline leaks and spills.

Neither of those environmental threats was properly addressed in the State Department’s draft review.

Tell Secretary Kerry to heed the wake-up call from Arkansas and direct his State Department to conduct a new, comprehensive review that tallies the real costs of the Keystone XL.

As we move toward a clean energy future, there is no room for the dirtiest oil on the planet. A truthful environmental review will make that abundantly clear.

Thank you for making your voice heard at this important moment.

Visit The Sustainable Action Network

Related articles

• After 500,000 gallons of dirty tar sands oil and water spilled in Mayflower, Arkansas on easter day…. (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
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• Mariana Almeida: Kindly support NRDC & urge President Obama to deliver on his promise to address climate change & reject the proposed Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. (selvavidasinfronteras.wordpress.com)
• AMAZING Aerial Footage of Arkansas Tar Sands Oil Spill! (theinternetpost.net)
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Bold Progressives Visit the White House…..

Stephanie Taylor, PCCC co-founder, talks with media and delivers petitions to the White House. 

Click here to watch a recording of the event.

Today, along with our progressive allies, we delivered 2 million signatures directly to the White House!

NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN, Washington Post, and others covered the event.

You can watch video of the event here, courtesy of our friends at We Act Radio.

Tomorrow, we’re keeping up the pressure against cuts to Social Security benefits — and taking our message to Congress. 

Reps. Alan Grayson (D-FL) and Keith Ellison (D-MN) will join us for a national media call, where we’ll give a progressive response to the president’s budget that officially gets submitted to Congress tomorrow.

Want to join our national media call at 2pm Eastern by phone or online? Click here to RSVP “yes” or “maybe.”

On the call, you can ask questions along with national media. We’ll also give an update on how many members have joined Reps. Alan Grayson and Mark Takano (D-CA) in promising to vote against any bill that cuts Social Security benefits!

(If you aren’t one of the 200,000 citizen supporters of the Grayson-Takano letter, sign here right now so our pressure on Congress builds.)

All of this momentum is possible because good people like you are taking action across this country!

Visit The Sustainable Action Network ad back the PCCC and the Bold progressives for their hard work on this issue. Thanks!

MORE PHOTOS FROM TODAY’S WHITE HOUSE EVENT:

PCCC member Phyllis Zolotorow speaks to the crowd.

Rep. Mark Pocan (WI-2) addresses the crowd. (2012 PCCC candidate!)

PCCC Co-founder Stephanie Taylor speaking to the crowd.

PCCC candidates Mark Takano (CA-41) and Mark Pocan (WI-2) gather with PCCC co-founder Stephanie Taylor and others before the event.

The crowd at the White House petition delivery.

PCCC ally, Terry O’Neill from NOW, addresses the crowd.

Reps. Rick Nolan (MN_08) and Mark Takano (CA-41); our allies Jim Dean of Democracy for America, Nancy Altman of Social Security Works, and Damon Silvers of AFL-CIO; and PCCC co-founder Stephanie Taylor at the White House.

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• Feb 22 – Ask Scott Peters to Sign the Grayson-Takano Letter (peninsulademocrat.wordpress.com)
• Three-Quarters of Progressive Caucus Taking a Dive on Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid (my.firedoglake.com)
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• There Ought to be a Law…. (thefergusongroup.typepad.com)
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Exxon’s Paper Towel Clean Up….Don’t Worry About The Keystone Pipeline or any Oil Spills on land because the Great Way Exxon Cleans Up Oil Spills on land / marshes is to use Paper Towels and I am NOT joking by any means of that sentence…i Have a picure of it and I saw video footage of it a few seconds ago…..NOT NORMAL…these people plunder the earth just to make boat loads money at huge profits….and i get that corps are people too…but then what about morals like in individuals…..

I just saw footage of this on the rachel (Maddow) show and you cannot make this stuff up. Its not normal…..NOT NORMAL….Here is the story:

When news emerged last week that Exxon had surprisinglysecured a no-fly zone over the area surrounding its 150,000 gallon spill in Mayflower in Arkansas, most people thought that here was Big Oil up to its tricks again trying to deliberately stop the public and press from seeing the extent of the destruction from the spill.

So activists from Keystone XL Blockade decided they should go and investigate.  They heard rumours that Exxon was deliberately pumping oil into wetlands to keep it from public view. But when they tried to get to the affected area, they were turned away several times by police and Exxon spill cleanup workers.

But on Saturday they sneaked back to the oily wetlands. What we already knew is that the spill has already killed ducks and other wildlife, which have been found by cleanup workers.

But the footage taken by activists at the weekend says it all. It seems that Exxon has been dumping oil from its Mayflower spill in a wetlands area after all.

And no wonder they have been trying to keep the public away.  The footage (see picture) shows white paper towels scattered over the oil as some unbelievably pathetic attempt to clean up the oil. This is not some banana republic this is America’s backyard and yet the world’s largest and most powerful oil company is using paper towels to clean up a spill and then just leave them there.

If this is the 21st Century cutting edge clean up technology, it’s a complete joke. And it makes you wonder what they would do if there was a spill from the KXL.

Tar Sands Blockade has also been interviewing local residents. One said that the quality of the air is not good. He complained that his eyes were constantly watering, his sinuses were affected. And because of the pollution he could no longer fish in the local lake. Exxon acts “like nothing is wrong”, he said. “They act like it was no big deal”. The local resident accused Exxon of “Bullshit propaganda” over the spill .

Sherry Appleman, who has lived on the shores of Lake Conway for 12 years, recalls what happened on the day of the spill. She originally heard about the spill on Facebook. “They keep telling us different stories about what kind of oil spilled here. I don’t think the public actually knows what the public spilled here.” She too complained that “here throat is burning all the time” and that her sinuses were affected. “My throat is on fire all the time”.

Another resident said they first heard about the spill when a “terrible smell hit us”.

Will Exxon pay for its mess? Because the crude oil product is labelled dilbit or “diluted bitumen,” rather than “oil”, a legal loophole allows Exxon to escape without paying into a fund for cleaning up oil.

However, two Arkansas residents have now filed a class action lawsuit against Exxon Mobil, demanding over $5million in compensation.

Hopefully the court will be shown images of Exxon’s incompetent paper towel clean up technique.

Visit The Sustainable Action Network

Related articles

• Activists claim Arkansas oil spill diverted into wetland (rawstory.com)
• Oil from Exxon spill in Arkansas flowing into wetlands (rt.com)
• Oil from Exxon spill in Arkansas flowing into wetlands (EndtheLie.com)
• Arkansas town in lockdown after oil spill nightmare (earthfirstnews.wordpress.com)
• Tar Sands Oil Arkansas (readersupportednews.org)
• Arkansas oil spill could be almost 300,000 gallons, video shows oil in wetland (UPDATES) (treehugger.com)
• Arkansas to probe Exxon Mobile spill (bbc.co.uk)
• Arkansas town in lockdown after oil spill nightmare (grist.org)
• Exxon Oil Spill in Arkansas, Keystone Spoiler? (247wallst.com)
• PHOTOS: Decades of Exxon oil spills & explosions (greenpeaceblogs.org)

 

Sustainable Sundays Presents: Pipeline Spill Another Ugly Reminder of Keystone’s Dangers, Renowned Climatologist Retires From NASA to Fight Global Warming, Update: Charges Filed in Three-State Dog Fighting Raid, EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeline Company, Bills Seek to Halt Calif. Fracking to Protect Water, Air and Climate, Be a Voice for New York’s Animals, Take Action: Don’t Delay Grand Canyon Cleanup and the ASPCA Pet of the Week: Buffy

Sustainable Sundays Weekly E-Newsletter for the Sustainable Action Network (SAN) April 7, 2013 Pipeline Spill Another Ugly Reminder of Keystone’s Dangers Renowned Climatologist Retires From NASA to Fight Global Warming Bills Seek to Halt Calif. Fracking to Protect Water, Air and Climate EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeline Company Update: Charges Filed in Three-State Dog Fighting Raid Be a Voice for New York’s Animals Take Action: Don’t Delay Grand Canyon Cleanup ASPCA Pet of the Week: Buffy FEATURED PARK: Mississippi National River and Recreation Area, Minnesota The mighty Mississippi is one of the largest and most fabled rivers in the country and home to seven national parks—but only the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area was specifically created to share the history and science of the river itself. This urban oasis has a bit of everything, from canoeing and bird-watching opportunities to military relics and historic buildings. View the Slideshow » Learn More » Pipeline Spill Another Ugly Reminder of Keystone’s Dangers As if we needed any more evidence of the kind of havoc that Keystone XL could deliver, a pipeline carrying tar-sands oil ruptured on Friday in a small Arkansas town, spilling 400,000 gallons of crude in a subdivision and forcing people to evacuate 22 homes. It’s a nasty truth about oil pipelines: Systems fail — and people and wildlife pay the price. If the Keystone XL pipeline is built, it will transport as many as 35 million gallons of oil a day through a 1,700-mile pipeline from Canada to Texas, cutting across waterways and wildlife habitat for more than 20 imperiled species, including white whooping cranes and the massive, prehistoric pallid sturgeon. The U.S. State Department says Keystone XL could spill as many as 100 times during the course of its life. We just can’t take that risk. The Center for Biological Diversity is joining with people across the United States and beyond in opposing Keystone. Read more in The Week. Visit The Sustainable Action Network. Renowned Climatologist Retires From NASA to Fight Global Warming After almost 50 years as a climate scientist at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York, Dr. James Hansen — easily the U.S. government’s most visible scientific figure on climate change — retires this week. Besides being a leading voice urging action on climate change, Hansen, 72, has been arrested or cited at climate protests six times. Hansen says he intends to be more active in lawsuits against the government over its failure to limit greenhouse gas emissions; he also plans to advocate against the development of dirty tar-sands oil in Canada. “Dr. Hansen has been an extraordinary, singular force in the scientific and governmental community for swift, ambitious action against climate change,” said the Center for Biological Diversity’s Climate Law Institute Director Kassie Siegel. “We’ll be excited to see him making an impact as a private citizen.” Read more in The New York Times. Visit The Sustainable Action Network. Update: Charges Filed in Three-State Dog Fighting Raid Last week we told you about our role in a multi-state dog fighting raid in Texas, Missouri and Kansas. Now we’re able to update you on the nearly 100 dogs we transported to a temporary shelter and the dog fighters who harmed these animal victims. Get the latest news about this unfolding case. Read more… Visit The Sustainable Action Network. Bills Seek to Halt Calif. Fracking to Protect Water, Air and Climate Three California assembly members — Richard Bloom, Holly Mitchell and Adrin Nazarian — are introducing a trio of bills to halt hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, in the state while the threats it poses to the environment and public health are studied. Using huge volumes of water mixed with sand and dangerous chemicals to blast open rock formations and extract oil and gas, fracking — so far unregulated and unmonitored by the state — has already been deployed widely: More than 600 wells were fracked in California in 2011 alone. The move to halt fracking, supported by the Center for Biological Diversity and numerous other groups, reflects growing public concern about fracking’s threats to people, wildlife and the climate. All three bills seek to limit destruction as oil companies gear up to frack the Monterey Shale, a geological formation that holds an estimated 15 billion barrels of oil and lies beneath some of the state’s most important farmland and wildlife habitat. “We applaud these legislators for their leadership in protecting California from a dangerous fracking boom,” said the Center’s Brian Nowicki. “State regulators have shrugged off fracking’s dangers, so it’s up to lawmakers to stop oil companies from polluting our air, contaminating our water and undermining our fight against climate change.” Learn more about the Center’s fight against California fracking. Visit The Sustainable Action Network.   EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeline Company Late on a Friday afternoon in early March, the State Department released a 2,000-page draft report downplaying the environmental risks of the northern portion of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, which would ferry oil from Canada’s tar sands to refineries in Texas, passing through Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, and Oklahoma. But when it released the report, State hid an important fact from the public: Experts who helped draft the report had previously worked for TransCanada, the company looking to build the Keystone pipeline, and other energy companies poised to benefit from Keystone’s construction. State released documents in conjunction with the Keystone reportin which these experts’ work histories were redacted so that anyone reading the documents wouldn’t know who’d previously hired them. Yet unredacted versions of these documents obtained by Mother Jones confirm that three experts working for an outside contractor had done consulting work for TransCanada and other oil companies with a stake in the Keystone’s approval. Visit The Sustainable Action Network. Be a Voice for New York’s AnimalsPlease join the ASPCA, the New York State Animal Protection Federation, the Mohawk Hudson Humane Society and fellow animal lovers on Monday, May 6, in Albany for New York Voices for Animals Lobby Day! This is an exciting opportunity to let your state lawmakers know, in person, that you support animal protection and oppose laws that would allow animals to be hurt and exploited. During Lobby Day, you and other animal advocates will be the voices for animals in your state. New York Voices for Animals Lobby Day provides animal advocates with a structured, comfortable setting in which to meet their elected officials. We’ll organize and help prepare you for these meetings with insider tips and an overview of pending or upcoming legislation that directly impacts animals. Legislative topics will likely include: Cracking down on puppy mills Dog control officer training Strengthening cruelty penalties Stopping dog breed-specific insurance policy discrimination This event is critical to our lobbying efforts and to preventing animal cruelty. It’s also a great networking activity, and is invigorating, inspiring and very personally rewarding. Don’t miss out! RSVP today. New York Voices for Animals Lobby Day 2013 Date: Monday, May 6, 2013 Time: 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. Place: Legislative Office Building (in the Well) 198 State Street Albany, NY 12210 Cost: None! You must register by April 29 if you plan to attend. Visit The Sustainable Action Network Take Action: Don’t Delay Grand Canyon Cleanup Great news: The EPA recently proposed significant, long-awaited pollution reductions for a coal plant that has been dirtying the air at the Grand Canyon and at least ten other pristine public lands for decades. The bad news: It could take a decade or more to see pollution reduced. Please commend the EPA for working to clean the air at the Grand Canyon, but urge them to require cleanup measures in the next five years so we can soon breathe easier. Take Action » ASPCA Pet of the Week: Buffy ASPCA Pet of the Week: Buffy Buffy is a sweet, sensitive little puppy with lots of energy. If you’re ready to dedicate time to socializing and training this chocolate-colored sweetheart, adopt Buffy today in NYC! Visit The Sustainable Action Network     Sustainable Action Network - Sunset Daily Blog   Sunset Records - Sunset Urban - Tropical Records - Sunset Connect - Bomb Baby Sunset Records Soundtracks - Sunset Strategic Marketing (SSM) Sunset Classics & Sunset Jazz Recordings (SC&J) - S2e TV - Sunset Films Sustainable Action Network - Sunset Daily Blog

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• Sustainable Sundays: EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeline Company, Calif. Bill Would Ban Lead Hunting Ammo – Take Action, Bills Seek to Halt Calif. Fracking to Protect Water, Air and Climate, Tell Senators to Reject Keyston (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• People vs. the pipeline (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Keystone XL Pipeline Draws Broad Support (people-press.org)
• State Dept. review of Keystone XL pipeline raises no major objections (denverpost.com)
• NY Times Diatribe on Climate Science of Keystone XL Pipeline and Tar Sands Challenged by Friends of Science (prweb.com)
• Protesters urge Obama to reject Keystone pipeline (utsandiego.com)
• And, this is what I mean when I freak out about corporate and Gov. responsibility and you corrupt people that just dont care about anything, but money….Things will NOW rise to the surface….EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeli (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• State Dept report: Yeah, We Can’t Really Think of a Good Reason not to build the Keystone pipeline (tarpon.wordpress.com)
• State Dept: No major objections to Keystone XL pipeline (billingsgazette.com)
• The Hill: Environmental activists reeling as Keystone pipeline gains momentum (junkscience.com)

Nine times bigger

The Arkansas tar sands spill is just a small preview of Keystone XL.Watch the stunning local footage, then submit your comment against the tar sands!

“Thanks” to ExxonMobil, dozens of Arkansas families were forced to spend their weekend breathing in toxic chemicals like benzene from their own backyards. 84,000 gallons of toxic tar sands crude from Exxon’s latest pipeline spill poured down the street and continue to threaten Lake Conway. Officials have no idea when it will be safe for residents to return home.

Keystone XL would carry nine times more tar sands than the broken Arkansas pipeline. Raise your voice against the tar sands — submit an official comment against Keystone XL today!

Big Oil‘s track record speaks for itself. A similar tar sands spill happened in Michigan‘s Kalamazoo River in 2010, and nearly two years later, it still hasn’t been fully cleaned up. Families faced toxic health effects for months, and some even lost their pets.

Extreme fossil fuels mean extreme risks — enormous public risk for enormous private profit. This was actually the second tar sands spill in the same week, and comes right as ExxonMobil was fined nearly $2 million for yet another 2011 spill in the Yellowstone River.

When it comes to tar sands, spills and other painful accidents aren’t a matter of “if,” but “when.” For the residents of Mayflower, Arkansas, “when” was a holiday weekend evacuation.

Enough is enough. We can stop the tar sands by stopping new tar sands infrastructure — watch this shocking video of the spill, then submit your official comment against Keystone XL!

We can cut oil use tremendously by buying more fuel-efficient cars, switching to electric vehicles, and building walkable, bikeable neighborhoods — but the first step is stopping Big Oil’s latest projects from moving any further. Take action today!

Visit The Sustainable Action Network

Related articles

• After 500,000 gallons of dirty tar sands oil and water spilled in Mayflower, Arkansas on easter day…. (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• AMAZING Aerial Footage of Arkansas Tar Sands Oil Spill! (theinternetpost.net)
• Shell Pipeline Spill Is Fourth Disaster In Bad Week for Keystone XL Promoters (desmog.ca)
• Tar sands oil spill? Or just ‘heavy’ oil spill? Exxon loves having it both ways (dailykos.com)
• As Administration Decides On Keystone, U.S. Experiences Two Tar Sands Spills This Week (thinkprogress.org)
• Does Tar Sand Oil Increase the Risk of Pipeline Spills? (scientificamerican.com)
• Media Grounded: No-fly zone over Arkansas oil spill to censor news coverage? (dandelionsalad.wordpress.com)
• Because ‘Bitumen is not Oil,’ Pipelines Carrying Tar Sands Crude Don’t Pay into US Oil Spill Fund (desmog.ca)
• Exxon Tar Sands Spill Continues to Devastate Arkansas Community (thedailysheeple.com)
• The Exxon Pegasus Tar Sands Spill (littlegreenfootballs.com)

 

People vs. the pipeline

Click here to send a message to the State Dept. to stop Keystone XL

There have been so many protests against Keystone XL and the tar sands in the past few weeks, it’s hard to keep up. Counting actions against Senators who voted for the pipeline and those targeting the President, there have been actions in:

Miami and Tallahassee Florida, Salt Lake City, Denver (twice!), Wilmington Delaware, San Francisco (twice!), Harrisonburg Virginia, and Fargo North Dakota — plus dozens more targeting tar sands profiteers from coast to coast.

Those actions include thousands of people getting loud, hitting the streets and confronting politicians to make their voices heard. And it has started to make an impact: some Senators who voted for the pipeline are backpedaling, and the media is taking note.

I want to tell you all this because it shows once again the simplest and most important truth about the fight we’re in: people power works. In a democracy (which I think we still have), organized people can beat organized money. There will be setbacks and stumbles along the way, but together, we can do this.

Which brings me to the problem with the State Department and Keystone XL. This is an example of organized money at work. The department is in charge of reviewing the environmental impact of the pipeline, but the company that led the review was hand-picked by TransCanada, and gave a predictable result, saying the pipeline was an acceptable risk to the planet and its people.

But that report fell apart under scrutiny. The State Department tried to hide the reviewer’s connections to TransCanada and big oil but were found out, and more research revealed that the same company also put its stamp of approval on pipelines in Europe and South America that exploded multiple times.

Then fate intervened to underscore the folly of the State Department’s shoddy review. Last Friday, America got a startling preview of Keystone XL when a tar sands pipeline burst in Arkansas, sending toxic oil flowing through the streets and into creeks and lakes.

The risks are clearer than ever, and it’s up to us to fight the organized money pushing this project with organized people. From now until April 22nd when the comment period closes, we need to work to submit as many comments opposing Keystone XL to the State Department as we can.

Can you submit a personal comment to State explaining exactly why you oppose Keystone XL? Click here to add your comment: act.350.org/letter/a_million_strong_against_keystone/

Organizations from across the movement have come together and set a goal of 1 million unique comments to the State Department to stop the pipeline. To meet that goal, we’re going to organize a comment sprint in the final ten days of the review period, highlighting ten different reasons to stop the pipeline.

You can submit as many unique comments to the State Department as you’d like — putting in your personal thoughts now helps us start out on the right foot to hit the big 1 million goal.

If organized money is the problem, organized people are the solution. I’m looking forward to continuing this fight with you, wherever it may take us next.

Sources:

“Critical Part of Keystone Report Done by Firms with Deep Oil Industry Ties” Inside Climate News, March 6th, 2013.
insideclimatenews.org/news/20130306/keystone-xl-eis-state-department-transcanada-oil-tar-sands-industry-ensys-energy-koch-brothers-exxonmobil-bp-obama

“EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeline Company” Mother Jones, March 21, 2013.
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2013/03/keystone-xl-contractor-ties-transcanada-state-department

“State Dept. Keystone XL Contractor ERM Also Green-Lighted Explosive, Faulty Peruvian Pipeline Project” DeSmogBlog, April 3rd, 2013.
http://www.desmogblog.com/2013/04/03/state-dept-keystone-xl-contractor-erm-explosive-faulty-peruvian-pipeline-project

Visit The Sustainable Action Network

Related articles

• After 500,000 gallons of dirty tar sands oil and water spilled in Mayflower, Arkansas on easter day…. (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Keystone XL: The Pipeline to Disaster (realclearpolitics.com)
• NEW TransCanada Tar Sands Pipeline (earthfirstnews.wordpress.com)
• Keep Keystone XL and Coal Out of the Budget (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Top 5 Reasons Transporting Tar Sands Crude is Reckless (ecowatch.com)
• EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeline Company (climatedesk.org)
• And, this is what I mean when I freak out about corporate and Gov. responsibility and you corrupt people that just dont care about anything, but money….Things will NOW rise to the surface….EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeli (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Arkansas spill shows ‘nightmare scenario’ if Keystone approved, group warns (vancouversun.com)
• State Dept. finds few problems with Keystone XL – MarketWatch (articles.marketwatch.com)
• State Dept. Keystone XL Contractor ERM Also Green-Lighted Explosive, Faulty Peruvian Pipeline Project (desmogblog.com)

After 500,000 gallons of dirty tar sands oil and water spilled in Mayflower, Arkansas on easter day….

After 500,000 gallons of dirty tar sands oil and water spilled in Mayflower, Arkansas, we launched a comment drive to the State Department asking them to reject the dirty and dangerous Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. In less than two days, more than 34,700 LCV members have made their voices heard. What an amazing response to this terrible tragedy. But we still have a long way to go to reach one million messages by Earth Day (April 22).

Add your voice: Tell Secretary Kerry and President Obama to keep us safe from more tar sands spills and reject the risky Keystone XL pipeline!

Enough is enough! Join us in saying NO to more tar sands spills. Help us reach one million comments against the dangerous Keystone XL tar sands pipeline.

More than 500,000 gallons of tar sands oil and water just spilled in Arkansas. Don’t let this dirty oil nightmare ooze across America. Help us gather 1 million comments to stop the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline! Submit your comment here >>

Imagine coming home to this: Oil oozing down your driveway, pooling in your back yard, and filling up your local waterways. Sounds like a nightmare, right?

This is the reality that families in Mayflower, Arkansas, have had to deal with since more than 500,000 gallons of dirty tar sands oil and water spilled out of a ruptured Exxon Mobil pipeline this past Friday.

This spill is terrible and our hearts go out to the community in Mayflower affected by this disaster. This shouldn’t have happened. That’s why it’s critical that President Obama and Secretary Kerry reject the construction of a much bigger pipeline, Keystone XL, which could cause even more devastating spills of tar sands crude in waterways and lands across America.

We need you to raise your voice now. Tell the State Department to keep us safe from more tar sands spills by rejecting the dangerous Keystone XL pipeline!

Unfortunately, the spill in Arkansas repeats a story we know too well. In 2010, an Enbridge Energy pipeline in Michigan broke and spilled more than 800,000 gallons of toxic tar sands crude into the Kalamazoo River — and it still hasn’t been fully cleaned up. That same year, TransCanada, the company that wants to build the Keystone XL pipeline now, built a pipeline that experienced 12 separate spills in a single year. In 2011, one of Exxon Mobil’s pipelines in Montana ruptured and contaminated the Yellowstone River. And even just last week, a train derailed in Minnesota and spilled 30,000 gallons of tar sands crude.

If these stories make your stomach churn, I know how you feel. It’s absolutely infuriating that we keep allowing Big Oil to put our lands, water, and wildlife at risk, when we have seen over and over how it ends.

The Keystone XL tar sands pipeline would be a monster — carrying 20 times more oil than the Exxon pipeline that burst in the Yellowstone River two years ago. If we have any hope of stopping it, we need you to tell Secretary of State John Kerry that this dirty pipeline is all risk and no reward. Send a message asking him to reject it here >>

Right now, the State Department is accepting comments on its review of the potential environmental impacts of the Keystone XL pipeline. The initial draft of this review was completely off-base, downplaying the risks of spills and the devastating impact that this dirty oil would have in fueling climate change. Luckily, we have the chance to weigh in on this draft and push them to change it to recommend what many scientists have attested to — that this pipeline is too dangerous to build and the tar sands oil needs to stay in the ground.

So we’re joining with groups across the environmental movement to gather one million comments opposing the dirty Keystone XL pipeline by the end of the comment period on April 22. With only 20 days to go, we need you to send a message now.

Thanks to contributions from more than 3,000 LCV members, we hit our goal in our fundraising drive for this campaign and now we’ve got all the resources we need to win this fight.

But we can’t do it without your help. So thanks for taking a moment to make your voice heard today.

Related articles

• AMAZING Aerial Footage of Arkansas Tar Sands Oil Spill! (theinternetpost.net)
• Keystone XL: The Pipeline to Disaster (realclearpolitics.com)
• Exxon Mobil Pipeline Rupture and Train Derailment Oil Spill, Exemplifies Concerns of Keystone XL (ecowatch.com)
• Media Grounded: No-fly zone over Arkansas oil spill to censor news coverage? (dandelionsalad.wordpress.com)
• Tar sands oil spill? Or just ‘heavy’ oil spill? Exxon loves having it both ways (dailykos.com)
• Because ‘Bitumen is not Oil,’ Pipelines Carrying Tar Sands Crude Don’t Pay into US Oil Spill Fund (desmog.ca)
• Green Party challenges Obama Corruption on Keystone XL Pipeline (onthewilderside.com)
• Protesters urge Obama to reject Keystone pipeline (utsandiego.com)
• Aerial Footage of Arkansas Tar Sands Oil Spill – 4 min video (talesfromthelou.wordpress.com)
• What 10,000 Barrels Of Crude Oil Running Down Your Street Looks Like – Hours after Republicans call the Keystone XL pipeline a “no-brainer” that passes environmental “muster,” ExxonMobil spills 10,000 barrels of crude oil in a residential neighborhood. (thedailydolt.com)

Sustainable Sundays: There’s still time to stop Keystone XL

Do you remember President Obama’s promise to lead on climate change during his inaugural address? His words may have been eloquent, but his actions paint a drastically different picture. From promoting fracking to nominating gas industry cheerleader Ernest Moniz for energy secretary, President Obama has shown that he’s not ready to take real action to stop climate change.

Our job is to keep the pressure on for real solutions, and we’ve partnered up with our allies at Greenpeace to ask him to do just that by rejecting the environmental calamity known as the Keystone XL Pipeline. Will you join our friends at Greenpeace and submit a public comment asking President Obama to say NO to the dirty Keystone XL Pipeline project?

This could be our last chance to submit a comment to the President before he must make a final decision on whether or not he will approve this pipeline. As you probably know, if the Keystone pipeline is approved, it could spell climate disaster not just for our country, but for the whole planet. Food & Water Watch is proud to stand with Greenpeace and demand that President Obama take real action to stop climate change — will you stand with them too and submit your comment today?

Thank you for taking action,

Moreover:

This is likely our last chance to weigh in on the Keystone XL Pipeline.Submit an official comment today telling President Obama to reject the pipeline!

The clock is ticking on what’s likely our last chance to weigh in on the Keystone XL Pipeline before the President makes his decision.

Experts are saying that it’s “game over” for the climate if the plan moves forward. The stakes for this final State Department public comment period couldn’t be higher.

The subject for these comments is the recently released Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement which ignored the pipeline’s significant risk for toxic spills and its catastrophic impacts on the climate. Which isn’t surprising given that authors of the study previously worked for TransCanada — the company behind the tar sands project and that stands to gain the most from the pipeline. A fact that the State Department tried to cover up.

The comment period is ending soon and time is running out to send a clear message to the Obama administration that Americans oppose this dangerous project. Click here to submit your comment telling President Obama to reject the Keystone XL Pipeline.

President Obama delivered some truly inspiring rhetoric on climate action during his inaugural speech. But if he hopes to keep his climate promise, he can’t approve the pipeline. It’s that simple.

Decisions like the Keystone XL Pipeline will be what ultimately determines the President’s legacy on climate change. Not a speech.

We have to do everything in our power to convince President Obama to do the right thing and reject the pipeline. Preserving a livable climate depends on it.

Submit a public comment before it’s too late urging President Obama to reject the Keystone XL Pipeline.

We are already seeing the effects of climate change in the form of extreme weather. And things will only get better if we take action immediately. The time is now and it starts with rejecting this pipeline.

Thanks for submitting a comment and for all that you do.

Visit The Sustainable Action Network

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• Sustainable Sundays: EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeline Company, Calif. Bill Would Ban Lead Hunting Ammo – Take Action, Bills Seek to Halt Calif. Fracking to Protect Water, Air and Climate, Tell Senators to Reject Keyston (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Right now, 50 or so of our friends and allies are on their way to risk arrest at the White House to encourage President Obama say no to the Keystone XL pipeline. (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Bay Area Activists Prepare for Direct Action to Stop Keystone XL Pipeline (indybay.org)
• Bob Burnett: Keystone XL Pipeline: 3 Key Questions (huffingtonpost.com)
• Senate Vote to Reveal ‘Scoreboard’ of Keystone XL, Big Oil Lackeys (commondreams.org)
• One Year Ago Today, Obama Promised to Expedite Keystone XL (pjmedia.com)
• GOP presses Obama to approve ‘no-brainer’ Keystone XL pipeline (thehill.com)
• Keystone XL Pipeline: The fuse of a carbon bomb (coolrevolution.net)
• No winners in debate over Keystone pipeline (utsandiego.com)
• Alberta buys $30 000 New York Times ad to promote Keystone XL tar sands pipeline (canadapetrostate.wordpress.com)

Every. Single. Time.

Last Saturday morning, Senators Gillibrand and Schumer stood up to Big Oil and Big Coal — send your thank-you note today!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last weekend, Big Coal and Big Oil tried to stop your work to protect our climate and public health.

Their friends in the Senate used the budget process to launch attacks on life-saving protections against industrial carbon pollution and toxic mercury. They even had an amendment that supported the toxic Keystone XL tar sands pipeline — even though it has nothing to do with the budget and isn’t the Senate’s decision to make.

Most of these amendments were crassly calculated to do nothing more than make Big Oil and Big Coal executives happy, but what the votes showed is that New York can be proud of Senators Gillibrand and Schumer when the chips are down.

Will you thank Senators Gillibrand and Schumer for putting New York’s communities and climate ahead of special interests?

On clean air and water, energy efficiency, and dirty fuels like tar sands, they voted to protect our communities and our climate every single time.

Through the wee hours of the morning, Senators Gillibrand and Schumer fought back and voted to:

• Stand up for protections from climate-destroying carbon pollution
• Say no to the Keystone XL pipeline
• Uphold critical safeguards against toxic mercury
• Research the next generation of clean energy technologies
• Help Americans become more energy efficient with weatherization

Thank Senators Gillibrand and Schumer for keeping up the fight and saying ENOUGH to Big Coal and Big Oil. We need to let courageous senators like that know we’ve got their backs against the big polluters!

The next Senate fight could be the confirmation of a new EPA administrator, an attack on protections against carbon emissions or asthma-inducing soot, or yet another drive for a climate-destroying tar sands pipeline. No matter what, we need to let courageous senators like Senators Gillibrand and Schumer know we’ve got their backs and are proud of them for fighting back. Send your message right away!

Thanks for all you do for the environment,

Visit the Sustainable Action Network.

Related articles

• Keep Keystone XL and Coal Out of the Budget (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Senate Vote to Reveal ‘Scoreboard’ of Keystone XL, Big Oil Lackeys (commondreams.org)
• Sustainable Sundays: EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeline Company, Calif. Bill Would Ban Lead Hunting Ammo – Take Action, Bills Seek to Halt Calif. Fracking to Protect Water, Air and Climate, Tell Senators to Reject Keyston (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Florida Senator Bill Nelson sides with Big Oil in vote for Keystone XL (sierraclub.typepad.com)
• Big money influences Keystone pipeline Senate vote (summitcountyvoice.com)
• Schumer, Gillibrand Announce Over $54 Million in Federal Reimbursement for Emergency Home Repairs in New York City (newyork.realestaterama.com)
• Hold Your Senators Accountable on Their Dirty Oil Vote (ecowatch.com)
• Big Oil, Dirty Energy Money Fuel the Hoeven Amendment (lolwutpolitics.wordpress.com)
• Senators Cashing in on Oil Money Push for Keystone XL Approval With New Bill (alternet.org)
• Bay Area Activists Prepare for Direct Action to Stop Keystone XL Pipeline (indybay.org)

Sustainable Sundays: EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeline Company, Calif. Bill Would Ban Lead Hunting Ammo — Take Action, Bills Seek to Halt Calif. Fracking to Protect Water, Air and Climate, Tell Senators to Reject Keystone XL — Take Action, 50 Cities to Obama: Use Clean Air Act Against Climate Chaos, New campaign to protect ocean life in the “Grand Canyon” of the sea, Happy Tails Pet of the Week: Mr. Coffee’s Cup of Tea, True Tails of A Pet Sitter AND Here’s the insanely long list of amendments filed to the Senate budget; I think anyone could attached anything on to this budget:

Sustainable Sundays Weekly E-Newsletter for the Sustainable Action Network (SAN) March 24, 2013 Calif. Bill Would Ban Lead Hunting Ammo — Take Action Tell Senators to Reject Keystone XL – Take Action Bills Seek to Halt Calif. Fracking to Protect Water, Air and Climate EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeline Company 50 Cities to Obama: Use Clean Air Act Against Climate Chaos New campaign to protect ocean life in the “Grand Canyon” of the sea Here’s the insanely long list of amendments filed to the Senate budget; I think anyone could attached anything on to this budget: Happy Tails Pet of the Week: Mr. Coffee’s Cup of Tea True Tails of A Pet Sitter FEATURED PARK: Padre Island National Seashore, Texas Dunes, lagoons, tidal flats, and coastal prairie… Padre Island’s 70 miles of protected shoreline offer a surprising diversity of terrain. For bird lovers, early spring is one of the best times to plan a trip: The park’s location on the Central Flyway makes it an ideal stop for watching the winged migration overhead. View the Slideshow » Learn More » Calif. Bill Would Ban Lead Hunting Ammo — Take Action A new bill in California would remove toxic lead from hunting ammunition and provide important protections for people and wildlife. Assemblyman Anthony Rendon’s bill to require nonlead ammo for all hunting in California, A.B. 711, was made public this week; a hearing is expected next month. The Center for Biological Diversity, which has been working for a decade to get lead out of hunting ammunition, is supporting the bill. If you live in California, we need you to speak out for it. Lead that’s left in the wild takes a deadly toll on wildlife, poisoning and killing bald eagles, endangered California condors, swans, loons and millions of other birds yearly. It also poses significant health risks to people eating wild game. A new national poll commissioned by the Center finds that 57 percent of Americans support requiring a switch to nontoxic hunting bullets. Hunters in much of central and Southern California have been hunting with copper and other lead-free ammunition since 2008, when state regulations required use of nonlead hunting ammo in California condor range. Rendon’s bill extends the protection from lead poisoning toall wildlife in the state and safeguards human health. Read our press release, and if you’re a California resident, take a moment to voice your support for the bill. Tell Senators to Reject Keystone XL – Take Action The U.S. Senate could vote as early as Tuesday on whether the disastrous Keystone XL pipeline gets built. We can’t let that happen. The 1,700-mile pipeline would, every day, carry up to 35 million gallons of oil strip-mined from Canada’s tar sands — some of the dirtiest, most climate-hostile fuels on the planet. The pipeline would also cut through rivers, streams, and wildlife habitat for at least 20 imperiled species, including whooping cranes and pallid sturgeon. If we’re going to stop this destructive behemoth in its tracks, we need to show massive opposition. This week that means joining the Center for Biological Diversity to contact your senators and tell them to reject Keystone XL, a project that leading climate scientist Dr. James Hansen says will be game “over” for our ability to avoid a climate catastrophe — a project even the State Department admits could spill 100 times over the course of its lifetime. Please stand with the Center today in calling on the Senate to reject Keystone. Bills Seek to Halt Calif. Fracking to Protect Water, Air and Climate Three California assembly members — Richard Bloom, Holly Mitchell and Adrin Nazarian — are introducing a trio of bills to halt hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, in the state while the threats it poses to the environment and public health are studied. Using huge volumes of water mixed with sand and dangerous chemicals to blast open rock formations and extract oil and gas, fracking — so far unregulated and unmonitored by the state — has already been deployed widely: More than 600 wells were fracked in California in 2011 alone. The move to halt fracking, supported by the Center for Biological Diversity and numerous other groups, reflects growing public concern about fracking’s threats to people, wildlife and the climate. All three bills seek to limit destruction as oil companies gear up to frack the Monterey Shale, a geological formation that holds an estimated 15 billion barrels of oil and lies beneath some of the state’s most important farmland and wildlife habitat. “We applaud these legislators for their leadership in protecting California from a dangerous fracking boom,” said the Center’s Brian Nowicki. “State regulators have shrugged off fracking’s dangers, so it’s up to lawmakers to stop oil companies from polluting our air, contaminating our water and undermining our fight against climate change.” Learn more about the Center’s fight against California fracking. EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeline Company Late on a Friday afternoon in early March, the State Department released a 2,000-page draft report downplaying the environmental risks of the northern portion of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, which would ferry oil from Canada’s tar sands to refineries in Texas, passing through Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, and Oklahoma. But when it released the report, State hid an important fact from the public: Experts who helped draft the report had previously worked for TransCanada, the company looking to build the Keystone pipeline, and other energy companies poised to benefit from Keystone’s construction. State released documents in conjunction with the Keystone reportin which these experts’ work histories were redacted so that anyone reading the documents wouldn’t know who’d previously hired them. Yet unredacted versions of these documents obtained by Mother Jones confirm that three experts working for an outside contractor had done consulting work for TransCanada and other oil companies with a stake in the Keystone’s approval. 50 Cities to Obama: Use Clean Air Act Against Climate Chaos It’s the biggest milestone yet in the Center for Biological Diversity’s ambitious Clean Air Cities campaign. Fifty cities across the nation have passed resolutions urging the federal government to use the Clean Air Act ambitiously — and quickly – to halt otherwise irreversible climate catastrophe, from city-swallowing sea-level rise to polar bear-killing sea-ice melt to coral reef-obliterating ocean acidification. Cities that have heeded the Center’s call to action include Los Angeles; Nashville; Washington, D.C. — and now our 49th and 50th municipalities, San Leandro, Calif., and Newton, Mass. Joining our cause is especially urgent: The Obama administration is reportedly considering putting off or weakening a key Clean Air Act rule aimed at cutting greenhouse gas pollution from new power plants. Congress is also once again taking aim at the Clean Air Act’s authority to reduce carbon pollution through an amendment inserted into the latest budget debate. So a big thanks to all our Clean Air Advocates and participating cities — but if your hometownisn’t on our Clean Air Cities list, please use our Clean Air Cities Take-action Toolbox to get it there now, before it’s too late. New campaign to protect ocean life in the “Grand Canyon” of the sea                                   The majority of the fish caught in the United States comes from the Bering Sea. Home to whales, seals, polar bears and underwater canyons teeming with life, the Bering Sea is one of our most productive ecosystems. Just like our national parks, we must protect ecosystems like the Bering Sea whose underwater canyons are larger than the Grand Canyon itself. Here’s the insanely long list of amendments filed to the Senate budget; I think anyone could attached anything on to this budget: Here’s the insanely long list of amendments filed to the Senate budget; I think anyone could attached anything on to this budget:             Happy Tails Pet of the Week: Mr. Coffee’s Cup of Tea In this week’s Happy Tail, In early February, Virginia Stevenson brought home a ten-month-old cat named Coffee from the ASPCA Adoption Center in Manhattan, and the two experienced an immediate connection. Coffee, since renamed Mr. Coffee, also became fast friends with Virginia’s resident rescue cat and has wasted no time making himself right at home…                 True Tails of A Pet Sitter Updates Daily!                         Sustainable Action Network - Sunset Daily Blog   Sunset Records - Sunset Urban - Tropical Records - Sunset Connect - Bomb Baby Sunset Records Soundtracks - Sunset Strategic Marketing (SSM) Sunset Classics & Sunset Jazz Recordings (SC&J) - S2e TV - Sunset Films Sustainable Action Network - Sunset Daily Blog

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• Right now, 50 or so of our friends and allies are on their way to risk arrest at the White House to encourage President Obama say no to the Keystone XL pipeline. (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Senate Vote to Reveal ‘Scoreboard’ of Keystone XL, Big Oil Lackeys (commondreams.org)
• Keep Keystone XL and Coal Out of the Budget (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• And, this is what I mean when I freak out about corporate and Gov. responsibility and you corrupt people that just dont care about anything, but money….Things will NOW rise to the surface….EXCLUSIVE: State Dept. Hid Contractor’s Ties to Keystone XL Pipeli (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Sustainable Sundays: Three U.S. Turtles Win International Protection, Tell Senators to Reject Keystone XL – Take Action, Simulators Replace Live Pigs in Tulane Trauma Training, Tar Sands Pipeline Gets Whitewashed, World Fails to Ban Trade in Polar Bear Pa (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
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• Dozens Arrested as Keystone XL Protests Erupt Across the U.S. (ecowatch.com)
• Senate endorses Keystone XL pipeline construction (rapidcityjournal.com)
• U.S. Senate endorses construction of Keystone XL pipeline from Alberta to Texas (vancouversun.com)
• Will the U.S. Senate Stand Up for Our Future and Derail the Keystone XL? (ecowatch.com)

Here’s the insanely long list of amendments filed to the Senate budget; I think anyone could attached anything on to this budget:

The Senate passed a budget for the first time in four years shortly before 5 a.m. on Saturday. Why was the night so long? Before the debate could end, senators spent hours wading through a long series of symbolic, non-binding votes on amendments to the budget, a.k.a. “vote-a-rama.”

(Saul Loeb/AFP)

Senators filed more than 500 amendments, but just a fraction of the total was actually brought to the floor last night for a vote. (For more explanatory background on vote-a-rama read David Graham and Keith Hennessy.) Here’s a list of nearly all the amendments that were filed, with the ones that were actually voted on in bold. (Vote results courtesy of the Library of Congress’s invaluable THOMAS database.)

• Ayotte amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for the prohibition of funding of the medium extended air defense system. (#136) Agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 94 – 5.

• Moran amendment to increase funding for research at the National Institutes of Health. (#137)

• Isakson amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund related to establishing a biennial budget and appropriations process. (#138) Agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 68 – 31.

• Inhofe amendment to uphold Second Amendment rights and prevent the United States from entering into the United Nations Arms Trade Treaty. (#139) Agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 53 – 46.

• Inhofe amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to modify the methodology of the Department of Transportation’s Compliance, Safety, Accountability Program. (#140)

• Inhofe amendment to create a point of order against legislation that would impose a user fee with respect to general aviation. (#141)

• Barrasso amendment to reprogram funds for the Environmental Protection Agency to conduct whole economy modeling for pending regulatory proposals. (#142)

• Collins amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to require the President, the Vice President, and members of the President’s cabinet to obtain their health insurance coverage through health insurance exchanges established under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. (#143)

• Collins amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to restore a sensible definition of full-time employee for purposes of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. (#144) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Collins amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for sensible regulatory reform for Executive departments and independent regulatory agencies, including cost-benefit analysis for major and significant rules, good guidance practices, and relief from first-time, nonharmful paperwork violations. (#145)

• Barrasso amendment to increase funds for National Defense to prevent 57,795 National Guard military technicians from being furloughed in order to maintain a high level of National Guard readiness to respond to State emergencies and overseas missions and to provide an offset. (#146)

• Shaheen amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide assistance to small businesses in accessing foreign markets. (#147)

• Shaheen amendment to end the feedstock flexibility program for bioenergy producers and reform the Federal sugar program. (#148)

• Shaheen amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to increase the capacity of Federal agencies to ensure effective contract management and contract oversight. (#149) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Bennet amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to fund a broad range of underfunded wildfire-related activities. (#150)

• Bennet amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to promote energy conservation and clean energy. (#151)

• Portman amendment to provide reconciliation instructions to reduce the deficit by $63,860,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2014 through 2023. (#152) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 43 – 56.

• Portman amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to promote exports. (#153) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Portman amendment to require the Congressional Budget Office to include macroeconomic feedback scoring of tax legislation. (#154) Agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 51 – 48.

• Portman amendment to repeal the budget’s tax increases and tax reconciliation instructions, and replace them with it a deficit-neutral reserve fund for legislation that would cut corporate tax rates while reducing lower-priority business tax preferences. (#155)

• Grassley amendment to protect Americans from a $1,000,000,000,000 tax increase and provide for pro-growth revenue-neutral comprehensive tax reform. (#156) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 45 – 54.

• Ayotte amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure equality under the law by guaranteeing that Congress and the President live under the same laws they create. (#157)

• Ayotte amendment to prohibit consideration of a budget resolution that includes revenue increases while the civilian unemployment rate is above 5.5 percent, the administration’s prediction for the unemployment rate without the stimulus. (#158) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 45 – 54.
  

• Ayotte amendment to establish a point of order prohibiting the consideration of any legislation after April 15^th until a budget resolution is agreed to in the Senate. (#159)

• Ayotte amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to improve transparency in the value-added producer grant program to prevent spending taxpayer dollars on wasteful government giveaways. (#160)

• Ayotte amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for achieving full auditability of the financial statements of the Department of Defense by 2017. (#161) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Ayotte amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to expand and enhance the no contracting with the enemy provisions and ensure that no United States taxpayer dollars go to the enemies of the United States. (#162)

• Ayotte amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to modernize the nuclear weapons complex and strategic delivery systems of the United States to maintain America’s nuclear deterrent, which is critical to the security of the American people. (#163)

• Ayotte amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to put more Americans back to work by removing burdensome and costly regulations from the backs of employers. (#164)

• Ayotte amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prohibit the Department of Labor from implementing a proposal to expand the definition of “fiduciary” under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) to include appraisals of employee stock ownership plans. (#165)

• Ayotte amendment to include the reining in of onerous regulations on our nation’s fishing industry in a deficit-neutral reserve fund. (#166)

• Ayotte amendment to prohibit raising taxes to offset new spending. (#167)

• Ayotte amendment to prohibit raising taxes to offset new spending. (#168)

• Ayotte amendment to prohibit raising taxes to offset new spending. (#169)

• Ayotte amendment to prohibit raising taxes to offset new spending. (#170)

• Ayotte amendment to prohibit raising taxes to offset new spending. (#171)

• Collins amendment to prohibit certain revisions of allocations for workforce investment measures that lack program integrity controls for the Job Corps program. (#172)

• Inhofe amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to protect low-income families from electricity cost increases. (#173)

• Inhofe amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to protect vulnerable families from job killing regulations. (#174)

• Inhofe amendment to create a point of order against legislation that would allow funds to be used to enforce any oil refinery rule or regulation against family farms. (#175)

• Roberts amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund related to the reduction of wasteful spending, which may include but is not limited to the establishment of a new committee of the Senate with the purpose of examining and proposing annually legislation to reduce wasteful, inefficient, and duplicative spending. (#177)

• Roberts amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to remove contradictory data collection requirements for financial institutions. (#178)

• Roberts amendment to increase funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act while cutting untested educational programs elsewhere in the budget. (#179)

• Roberts amendment to eliminate the low-income home energy assistance loophole in the supplemental nutrition assistance program. (#180)

• Roberts amendment to eliminate the employment and training program of the supplemental nutrition assistance program. (#181)

• Roberts amendment to enact the reforms described in S458, the Improve Nutrition Program Integrity and Deficit Reduction Act of 2013. (#182)

• Roberts amendment to reduce resources provided for categorical eligibility. (#183)

• Roberts amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to expedite exports from the United States through reform of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 in such a manner that greenhouse gas emissions produced outside the United States by any good exported from the United States are not subject to the requirements of that Act. (#184) Agreed to in the Senate by voice vote.

• Roberts amendment to prohibit the Secretary of Health and Human Services from using funds for the implementation or management of health benefit exchanges until the chief actuary of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services certifies that the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 have resulted in a reduction in the average health insurance premiums for Americans of $2500. (#185)

• Roberts amendment to protect all patients by prohibiting the use of data obtained from comparative effectiveness research to deny coverage of items or services under Federal health care programs and to ensure that comparative effectiveness research accounts for advancements in genomics and personalized medicine, the unique needs of health disparity populations, and differences in the treatment responses and the treatment preferences of patients. (#186)

• Roberts amendment to prohibit the use of funds for promotional or marketing materials promoting the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. (#187) Not agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Roberts amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to address what the President of the United States has called a “health spending problem”. (#188)

• Roberts amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to address what the President of the United States has called a “health spending problem”. (#189)

• Manchin amendment to ensure sufficient funding for underground and surface coal mining safety and health research. (#190)

• Manchin amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to reduce the dependence of the United States on imports of rare earth metals from the People’s Republic of China. (#191)

• Udall (NM) amendment to modify the deficit-neutral reserve fund for America’s service members and veterans to increase access to health care for veterans in rural areas. (#192). Agreed to by unanimous consent.

• Udall (NM) amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to strengthen and reform the National Nuclear Security Administration. (#193)

• Coats amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to repeal the 3.8 percent tax on investment income imposed by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. (#194)

• Coats amendment to require fuller reporting on possible costs to taxpayers of any budget submitted by the President. (#195) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Coats amendment to create a point of order against legislation that would increase net direct spending when the national debt exceeds the size of the economy of the United States. (#196)

• Coats amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for revenue-neutral tax reform that grows the economy rather than growing the size of government. (#197)

• Sanders amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to protect the benefits of disabled veterans and their survivors, which may not include a chained CPI. (#198) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Cruz amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to limit Federal land to a certain percentage of the total land mass of any State. (#199)

• Cruz amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for preventing domestic drone killings. (#200)

• Cruz amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for choice-based early education scholarships. (#201).

• Cruz amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for the repeal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 and to encourage patient-centered reforms to improve health outcomes and reduce health care costs, promoting economic growth. (#202) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 45 – 54.

• Sessions amendment to balance the Democrat’s budget by 2023. (#203)

• Sessions amendment to reduce spending, provide for State revenue sharing, and decrease dependence on OPEC oil imports through the leasing of certain areas of the coasts of North Carolina and Virginia in the mid-Atlantic region of  the outer Continental Shelf for oil and gas exploration. (#204)

• Sessions amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to reform the use of Federal funds paid in civil litigation that seeks to compel Federal regulatory action.  (#205)

• Sessions amendment to reduce the growth in welfare spending from 80 percent to 60 percent. (#206)

• Sessions amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to end payment of Federal funds used in promoting nutrition programs through any partnerships between Federal agencies and foreign embassies. (#207)

• Sessions amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to achieve savings by prohibiting illegal immigrants or illegal immigrants granted legal status from qualifying for federally subsidized health care. (#208)

• Sessions amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to achieve savings by prohibiting illegal immigrants or illegal immigrants granted legal status from qualifying for a refundable tax credit. (#209)

• Manchin amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to strengthen sanctions imposed with respect to the energy sector of Iran to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapons capability. (#210)

• Johnson (WI) amendment to establish a point of order against a budget resolution that does not achieve a unified budget surplus after 2022. (#211)

• Johnson (WI) amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prevent the use of Federal funds for the bailout of improvident State and local governments. (#212)

• Johnson (WI) amendment to force Congress to ensure the solvency of the Social Security and Medicare programs. (#213) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 46 – 53.

• Toomey amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to increase funding for the inland waterways system. (#214)

• Blunt amendment to improve the deficit-neutral reserve fund to promote manufacturing in the United States. (#215)

• Hoeven amendment to ensure funds are available in fiscal year 2014 for the Air Force to conduct an analysis of alternatives to determine the next generation intercontinental ballistic missile and to provide an offset. (#216)

• Hoeven amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to support programs related to the nuclear missions of the Department of Defense and the National Nuclear Security Administration. (#217)  Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Hoeven amendment to ensure funds are available in fiscal year 2014 for the Air Force to develop a replacement for the air-launched cruise missile and to provide an offset. (#218)

• Burr amendment to protect Americans’ traditional and Roth retirement savings accounts from being used as source of revenue to pay for increased Government spending. (#219)

• Burr amendment to protect America’s voluntary employer-provided defined benefit retirement system from being used as a source of revenue to pay for increased Government spending. (#220)

• Burr amendment to protect America’s pensions and retirement accounts from being used as a source of revenue to pay for increased Government spending. (#221)

• Crapo amendment to establish a deficit neutral reserve fund to repeal the tax increases enacted under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that were imposed on low- and middle-income Americans. (#222) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 45 – 54.

• Johanns amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund related to the reform of applicable statutes to eliminate the risk of the Environmental Protection Agency conducting aerial surveillance for the inspection of agricultural operations. (#223)

• Johanns amendment to amend the deficit-neutral fund for a farm bill. (#224)

• Flake amendment to prohibit earmarks. (#225)

• Moran amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for Department of Homeland Security ammunition. (#226)

• Burr amendment to provide the American people with information about how much their health care premiums will skyrocket as a result of the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. (#227)

• Burr amendment to lower health care costs, promote job growth, ensure America’s global leadership in innovation, and provide tax relief to middle-class families. (#228)

• Burr amendment to provide regulatory relief to small businesses so that they can grow American jobs and strengthen our nation’s economy. (#229)

• Burr amendment to provide regulatory relief to small businesses so that they can grow American jobs and strengthen our nation’s economy. (#230)

• Burr amendment to ensure that millionaires on Medicare pay the full premium costs in order to strengthen the Medicare program for seniors and put the program on a sustainable path for taxpayers. (#231)

• Burr amendment to protect the American people and strengthen our national security by fully funding the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) and the BioShield Special Reserve Fund. (#232) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Moran amendment to increase funding for research at the National Institutes of Health. (#233)

• Begich amendment to exclude efforts on the Medium Extended Air Defense System from authorized efforts covered by the deficit-neutral reserve fund for national defense. (#234)

• Begich amendment to provide an additional element on the Ground-based Midcourse Defense System to the deficit-neutral reserve fund for national defense. (#235)

• Begich amendment to provide an additional element on the Ground-based Midcourse Defense System to the deficit-neutral reserve fund for national defense. (#236)

• Begich amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for the closure and consolidation of overseas military properties and installations, consistent with the recommendation in title XXIV of Senate Report 112-173 to accompany S. 3254, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013, given the increasing ability to rapidly deploy from the United States in support of contingencies around the globe and to encourage the Department of Defense to evaluate relocating overseas missions and troops in the United States to promote domestic economic development and growth, and to create a point of order against legislation that would authorize domestic base realignment and closure (BRAC) rounds in fiscal years 2015 and 2017 as requested by the Department of Defense, given the inaccurate cost estimates of the Department of Defense in every previously authorized BRAC round, including 2005 BRAC round, the implementation cost estimates for which grew from $21,000,000,000 to an actual $35,100,000,000, a 67 percent increase, and the estimated 20-year savings for which decreased by 72 percent, from $35,600,000,000 to $9,900,000,000, according to the 2012 Government Accountability Office report entitled, “Military Base Realignments and Closures: Updated Costs and Savings Estimates”. (#237)

• Shaheen amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to studying the exposure of United States financial institutions to the Eurozone. (#238)

• Udall (CO) amendment to provide additional suppression resources to the Forest Service and the Department of the Interior for the protection of communities, homes, water supplies, utility infrastructure, and natural resources from catastrophic wildfires. (#239) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Shaheen amendment to clarify that budget levels can be revised for a measure involving on-the-job training programs. (#240)

• Sanders amendment to provide for a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for legislation to reduce the deficit and create jobs by eliminating offshore tax shelters used by large profitable corporations to avoid paying federal income taxes. (#241)

• Grassley amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for a Medicaid FMAP bonus for any State that enacts medical liability reform. (#242)

• Grassley amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for preventing reductions in Medicaid disproportionate share hospital allotments of States that choose not to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. (#243)

• Cornyn amendment to reduce funds available to the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service for listing activities that are based on arbitrary decision deadlines reached in closed-door settlements under the Endangered Species Act, including Texas salamanders and lesser prairie chickens, and to reduce the deficit. (#244)

• Cornyn amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to exempt American farmers and ranchers in foreclosure from a tax increase. (#245)

• Cornyn amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to exempt families with sick children and seniors from a tax increase on medical expenses enacted in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. (#246)

• Cornyn amendment to ensure if the President fails to submit his budget by the deadline set in law the Director of the Office of Management and Budget does not get paid until he submits a budget; and that any savings will reduce the deficit. (#247) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Cornyn amendment to protect small businesses from higher taxes. (#248)

• Barrasso amendment to exempt all Americans from the unconstitutional individual insurance mandate and ensure that the President’s promise to reduce premiums by $2,500 is fulfilled. (#249)

• Barrasso amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to decrease premiums, increase jobs, allow for more affordable health care options by repealing the $100,000,000,000 tax on health insurance plans purchased by individuals, families and business. (#250)

• Hoeven amendment to require the Congressional Budget Office to include in its annual update to the Budget and Economic Outlook an analysis of the impact of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act on major economic indicators measured relative to prior law and an estimate of the budgetary effects of such impacts. (#251)

• Lee amendment to express the sense of the Senate regarding abortion of pain-capable unborn children in the Nation’s capital. (#252)

• Lee amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to increase the pool of highly skilled workers in the United States by removing per-country limits. (#253)

• Begich amendment to provide for a deficit-neutral reserve fund to require public disclosure of certain crop insurance information. (#254)

• Lee amendment to establish  a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prohibit funding for construction, planning, or support of a new United Nations building on the property of the Robert Moses Playground. (#255)

• Lee amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to limit funds for institutions or organizations established by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. (#256)

• Lee amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for an accounting of total United States contributions to the United Nations. (#257)

• Sessions amendment to create a point of order against legislation increasing the deficit. (#258)

• Sessions amendment to prohibit consideration of legislation that increases direct spending. (#259)

• Hoeven amendment to strike a provision relating to the clean energy fund. (#260)

• Blunt amendment to create a point of order against legislation that would create a Federal tax or fee on carbon emissions. (#261)

• Roberts amendment to increase funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act while cutting untested educational programs elsewhere in the budget. (#262)

• Paul amendment in the nature of a substitute. (#263) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 18 – 81.

• Sanders amendment to provide for a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for legislation to reduce the deficit and create jobs by eliminating offshore tax shelters used by large profitable corporations to avoid paying federal income taxes. (#264)

• Casey amendment to prohibit certain revisions of allocations for workforce investment measures that lack program integrity controls for the Job Corps program. (#265) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Casey amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fun to provide for on-the-job training in the Marcellus Shale region. (#266)

• Baucus amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to support rural schools and districts. (#267) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Hagan amendment to clarify that budget levels can be revised for a measure providing training that leads to recognized postsecondary credentials. (#268)

• Hagan amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to strengthen the enforcement of provisions of free trade agreements that relate to textile and apparel articles. (#269) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Casey amendment to provide for a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for legislation that enables individuals with disabilities to use existing savings vehicles. (#270)

• Casey amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide Federal tax incentives for life sciences research. (#271)

• Cardin amendment to improve the bill. (#272)

• Cardin amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to improve oral health care for children with Medicaid coverage. (#273) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Cardin amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide greater outreach and education about the saver’s tax credit. (#274)

• Cardin amendment to provide for a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for election reform. (#275)

• Cardin amendment to provide for a deficit-neutral reserve fund on health care improvement. (#276)

• Lautenberg amendment to amend the deficit-neutral reserve fund to invest in clean energy and preserve the environment in order to protect the public  health, including the health of children, pregnant women, workers, and communities, from toxic chemicals. (#277)

• Hagan amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for the families of United States service members and veterans. (#278) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Inhofe amendment to prevent the Department of Health and Human Services from waiving Federal work requirements under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs. (#279)

• Inhofe amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to requiring States to implement drug testing for Federal welfare programs for applicants and recipients of assistance including, but not limited to, the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. (#280)

• Inhofe amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure that impact aid payments under sections 8002 and 8003 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 do not fall below 2012-2013 school year levels. (#281)

• Inhofe amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to protect community banks from Basel III capital standards. (#282)

• Inhofe amendment to reduce spending and decrease the risk of drastic energy price increases by prohibiting further greenhouse gas regulations for the purposes of addressing climate change. (#283)

• Inhofe amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to protect jobs by preventing Federal agencies from overriding efforts by States to conserve species. (#284)

• Wicker amendment to provide for the repeal of new spending under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. (#285)

• Wicker amendment to increase the vote threshold required to waive a budget point of order prohibiting unfunded mandates in excess of limit. (#286)

• Rubio amendment to create a point of order against increases in Federal spending that are not offset by equivalent spending cuts. (#287)

• Rubio amendment to protect the housing market from being used as a source of revenue to pay for more spending by protecting the deduction for mortgage interest from being capped, limited, or eliminated to pay for new spending as part of any tax increase. (#288)

• Rubio amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for reforming the United Nations in the spirit of transparency, respect for basic human freedoms, and effective nonproliferation. (#289)

• Rubio amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to serve low- and middle-income students by providing access to private elementary and secondary schools. (#290)

• Rubio amendment to create a point of order against tax increases on middle income taxpayers. (#291)

• Rubio amendment to express the sense of the Senate to enact the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act. (#292)

• Heller amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure that the Bureau of Land Management collaborates with States in efforts to promote sustainable sage-grouse populations and the conservation of sage-grouse habitat by developing and approving State plans that prevent the listing of the bird under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 and preserve the way of life in, and economic health of, the impacted areas. (#293) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Heller amendment to express the sense of the Senate that the proposal made by National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform should be considered by the Senate. (#294)

• Corker amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to secure resources generated through more effective implementation of Department of State staff right-sizing processes for improvements in embassy and diplomatic security. (#296)

• Hatch amendment to promote innovation, preserve high-paying jobs, and encourage economic growth for manufacturers of lifesaving medical devices and cutting edge medical therapies. (#297) Agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 79 – 20.

• Hatch amendment to repeal the $130,000,000,000 job-crushing mandate so employers can continue to grow, create new jobs, expand the economy, and provide families with more coverage of their choices. (#298)

• Hatch amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prohibit the Obama Administration’s unconstitutional attempt to gut welfare reform and to provide for a 5-year reauthorization of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program that honors the dignity of real work. (#299)

• Hatch amendment to modify the deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to trade and international agreements to increase the competitiveness of the United States and United States exports. (#300)

• Hatch amendment to modify the deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to trade and international agreements to protect United States innovation and intellectual property interests. (#301)

• Hatch amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to promote government efficiency. (#302)

• Murkowski amendment to allow Medicare health care providers to negotiate with Medicare beneficiaries. (#303)

• Murkowski amendment to exempt advance appropriations for the Indian Health Services and Indian Health Facilities accounts of the Indian Health Service from a point of order against legislation that would provide an advance appropriation. (#304)

• Thune amendment to protect charitable organizations from being used as a source of revenue to pay for more spending by protecting the deduction for charitable giving from being capped, limited, or eliminated to pay for new spending as part of any tax increase. (#305)

• Thune amendment to protect charitable organizations from being used as a source of revenue to pay for more spending by protecting the deduction for charitable giving from being capped, limited, or eliminated to pay for new spending as part of any tax increase. (#306)

• Thune amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to permanently eliminate the Federal estate tax. (#307) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 46 – 53.

• Thune amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund that may establish biennial budgeting and appropriations, among other budget process reforms. (#308)

• Thune amendment to increase spending for the impact aid program under title VIII of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 in an offset manner. (#309)

• Thune amendment to increase funds for public safety in tribal areas and provide for an offset. (#310)

• Udall (NM) amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to strengthening and reforming the National Nuclear Security Administration. (#311)

• Casey amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for State and local law enforcement. (#312)

• Begich amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to improving the well-being of American Indian and Alaska Native individuals and families by meeting the contract support costs of Indian tribes. (#313)

• Landrieu amendment to modify the deficit-neutral reserve fund for America’s service members and veterans to include leases of major medical facilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs. (#314) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Brown amendment to ensure a pro-growth corporate tax code that prevents U.S. firms from avoiding taxation by using foreign subsidiaries to exploit U.S. markets or by shifting profits to foreign subsidiaries in amounts disproportionate to the activities and tangible business assets of such entities, as determined by the Joint Committee on Taxation. (#315)

• Manchin amendment to address prescription drug abuse in the United States. (#316) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Wicker amendment to establish a point of order against any budget resolution containing greater projected spending on net interest than on national defense. (#317)

• Crapo amendment to amend the reconciliation instruction to include instructions to the Committee on Finance to achieve the Budget’s stated goal of $275 billion in mandatory health care savings.(#318) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 47 – 52.

• Hoeven amendment to provide additional resources to Criminal Investigations and Police Services of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. (#319) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Hoeven amendment to provide additional resources to the natural gas technologies and unconventional fossil energy technologies programs of the Department of Energy. (#320)

• Hoeven amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to streamlining Bureau of Land Management regulations. (#321)

• Barrasso amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve relating to preventing the implementation and use of certain guidance. (#322)

• Barrasso amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to maintain and modernize United States nuclear forces, including nuclear warheads and delivery vehicles of all three legs of the nuclear triad (ICBMs, SLBMs, and nuclear-capable bombers), at levels no lower than the maximum allowed for under the New START Treaty until such time as the President certifies that the Russian Federation is in compliance with all its arms control obligations with the United States and is not engaging in activity inconsistent with such obligations and the Senate advises and consents to ratification of a treaty providing for the reduction of United States strategic nuclear forces to levels lower than New START levels. (#323)

• Barrasso amendment to create a point of order against legislation that increases the deficit, if the true cost of the legislation is not provided. (#324)

• Barrasso amendment to express the sense of the Senate that the levels of public debt outlined in section 101(5) of this resolution are responsible, reasonable, and in a sustainable place and that increasing the public debt to $24,364,925,000,000 through fiscal year 2023 under that section will be good for our children and grandchildren. (#325)

• Graham amendment to reduce the Federal poverty level qualification established in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act for the exchange subsidies from 400 percent of the Federal poverty level to 300 percent of the Federal poverty level. (#326)

• Graham amendment to reduce Medicare subsidies to wealthy beneficiaries by adopting the President’s proposal to increase income-related premiums and require beneficiaries earning more than $250,000 per year pay the total amount of their Medicare premium. (#327)

• Graham amendment to reduce spending for the National Labor Relations Board. (#328)

• Graham amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to broaden the effects of the sequester, including allowing Members of Congress to donate 20 percent of their salaries to charity or to the Department of Treasury during sequestration. (#329) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Graham amendment to amend the deficit-neutral reserve fund to replace sequestration to ensure balance in spending cuts. (#330)

• Graham amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund that pertains to any legislation reducing the 2017 Federal matching rate in Medicaid for the expansion population in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and clarifies that States may opt-out of the Medicaid expansion at any time. (#331)

• Vitter amendment to express the sense of the Senate regarding sex-selection abortions. (#332)

• Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to clarify eligibility for the child tax credit. (#333)

• Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prohibit the Department of Homeland Security from granting legal status to individuals illegally present in the United States before fully implementing the integrated entry and exit data system. (#334)

• Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to  prohibit funding for any international organization, agency, or entity (including the United Nations) that requires the registration of, or taxes a gun owned by a citizen of the United States. (#335)

• Vitter amendment to end automatic pay raises for members of Congress and reduce spending, deficits, and debt. (#336)

• Vitter amendment to establish a border security fee on international remittance transfers if the sender is unable to verify legal status in the United States, and for other purposes. (#337)

• Vitter amendment to end the mobile phone welfare program. (#338) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 46 – 53.

• Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to requiring States to implement drug testing programs for applicants for and recipients of assistance under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, which would encourage healthy, drug-free families instead of encouraging dependent behavior or ongoing drug abuse. (#339)

• Shelby amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for legislation that requires financial regulators to conduct rigorous cost-benefit analyses on all proposed rules. (#340) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 47 – 52.

• Begich amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to the labeling of genetically engineered fish. (#341) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Alexander amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to improve education in the United States by allowing funding under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to follow children to the school they attend. (#342)

• Alexander amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to support the creation or expansion of high-quality charter schools. (#343)

• Alexander amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to support State and local education agency compensation programs for teachers who have a demonstrated record of improving student academic achievement. (#344)

• Alexander amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to  waive requirements of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act law if the Chief Actuary of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services determines that States and employers can better protect consumers from escalating health insurance premiums, providing individuals with more job opportunities and families with more health coverage options. (#345)

• Alexander amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to fulfill President Barack Obama’s promise that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will lower premiums by up to $2,500 for a typical family per year. (#346)

• Alexander amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to give States the certainty and flexibility they need to serve their Medicaid beneficiaries by holding Washington accountable for deciding on Medicaid waiver applications in a timely manner. (#347)

• Alexander amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prevent restrictions to public access to fishing downstream of dams owned by the Corps of Engineers. (#348) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Alexander amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prevent funding for enforcing National Labor Relations Board decisions and regulations issued by a majority whose quorum was constituted by invalid recess appointments. (#349)

• Franken amendment to clarify the deficit-neutral reserve fund to promote employment and job growth. (#350)

• Franken amendment to provide additional uses for the deficit-neutral reserve fund for higher education. (#351)

• Franken amendment to amend the deficit-neutral reserve fund for unemployment relief to expand and expedite training opportunities for unemployment compensation recipients so they can gain the necessary skills to compete in the 21^st century workforce. (#352)

• Franken amendment to amend section 308 relating to broadband infrastructure investments in rural areas. (#353) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Franken amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to support tribal energy independence, economic development, and job creation through the development of renewable-energy resources and energy efficiency on Indian land. (#354)

• Begich amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to protecting the right of individuals to bear arms at water resources development projects. (#355)

• Moran amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for the prohibition of funding for ammunition for the Department of Homeland Security. (#356)

• Burr amendment to delay implementation of the President’s health care law for 2 years. (#357)

• Inhofe amendment to address the impacts of sequestration on the Department of Defense. (#358)

• Inhofe amendment to reduce spending and decrease the risk of drastic energy price increases by prohibiting further greenhouse gas regulations for the purposes of addressing climate change. (#359) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 47 – 52.

• Inhofe amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to uphold Second Amendment rights and prohibit the establishment of a national firearm registry. (#360)

• Hoeven amendment to ensure funds are available in fiscal year 2014 for the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s HOME Investment Partnership Program and to provide an offset. (#361)

• Hoeven amendment to ensure funds are available in fiscal year 2014 for the Department of Education’s Impact Aid program and to provide an offset. (#362)

• Hoeven amendment to ensure funds are available in fiscal year 2014 for the National Science Foundation’s Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) Program and to provide an offset. (#363)

• Kirk amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prevent Iran from directly or indirectly accessing the Trans-European Automated Realtime Gross Settlement Express Transfer System of the European Central Bank and to prevent the Government of Iran from accessing its euro-denominated foreign exchange holdings. (#364)

• Stabenow amendment to provide for a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for legislation to close tax loopholes for companies that ship jobs overseas and instead reward companies that bring jobs home. (#365)

• McCaskill amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to support the transition of service members to the civilian workforce by streamlining the process associated with Federal and State credentialing requirements. (#366) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Risch amendment to create a point of order against legislation that would provide funds for regulations that have not been reviewed, modified, or specifically authorized by Congress in statute. (#367)

• Risch amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for replacing the Medicaid program and the Children’s Health Insurance program with a block grant to the States. (#368)

• Inhofe amendment to achieve domestic energy independence. (#369)

• Murkowski amendment to create jobs, generate new receipts, and positively impact the energy security of the United States by increasing oil and natural gas production on Federal land and waters. (#370)

• Murkowski amendment to jobs, generate new receipts, positively impact the energy security of the United States, and reverse the decline of oil flowing through the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System by increasing oil production on Federal land in the State of Alaska that is not currently leased. (#371)

• Murkowski amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to the establishment of an advanced energy trust fund with receipts from new production on Federal land and waters that are not currently leased or scheduled to be made available for lease by fiscal year 2017. (#372)

• Lee amendment to provide a point of order against budgets spending more on net interest payments on the debt than on national defense, and to ensure the United States government funds its military at higher levels than the militaries of foreign holders of its debt. (#373) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 46 – 53.

• Lee amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to eliminate a source of corporate welfare by phasing out the authority of the Export-Import Bank of the United States. (#374)

• Paul amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for the restriction of drones in the United States. (#375)

• Paul amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund related to procedures for approval of major rules. (#376)

• Paul amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for the reform of aviation security. (#377)

• Paul amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to eliminate economic and military aid to Egypt unless and until the President of Egypt pledges in English and Arabic his intent to abide by the Camp David Accords. (#378)

• Paul amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to reduce foreign aid to Pakistan until it grants the release of Dr. Shakil Afridi, who is being held in prison for his assistance to the United States Government in capturing Osama bin Laden. (#379)

• Paul amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to clarify the definition of waters of the United States and to provide property rights protections. (#380)

• Paul amendment to reduce spending by withdrawing the United States from membership in the United Nations. (#381)

• Paul amendment to provide funding to the Department of Transportation for interstate bridge infrastructure projects and to reduce the Federal deficit by decreasing the amounts available for foreign assistance and loan guarantee programs administered by the Department of Energy. (#382) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 26 – 72.

• Paul amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to allow disciplinary measures to be taken against Department of State employees whose actions result in loss of life, serious injury, or significant destruction of property at or related to a United States mission overseas. (#383)

• Brown amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure that the Federal Government prioritizes American companies in awarding non-defense procurement contracts before granting Buy America waivers. (#384)

• Tester amendment to modify the deficit-neutral reserve fund to invest in clean energy and preserve the environment. (#385)

• Udall (NM) amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to tribal higher education for tribal higher education programs in the Department of the Interior for tribal scholarships, operating expenses, and other necessary purposes. (#386)

• Hagan amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to support export promotion for small businesses. (#387)

• Boozman amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to strengthening and reforming Federal offices of Inspectors General, reducing vacancies in offices of Inspectors General, and providing for improvements in the overall economy, efficiency, and effectiveness of Inspectors General. (#388)

• Boozman amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to address the disproportionate regulatory burdens on community banks. (#389) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Lautenberg amendment to include in the deficit-neutral reserve fund for service members and veterans a continuation of limitation on increases in certain health care fees, premiums, and costs for uniformed services beneficiaries in excess of percentage increases in uniformed services retired pay. (#390)

• Lautenberg amendment to express the sense of the Senate regarding preventing terrorists from purchasing guns. (#391)

• Lautenberg amendment to express the sense of the Senate regarding domestic violence and firearm possession. (#392)

• Lautenberg amendment to express the sense of the Senate regarding background checks at gun shows. (#393)

• Wyden amendment to ensure that chronic illness is addressed as part of health care improvement. (#394) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Inhofe amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to protect vulnerable families from unnecessary increases in fuel costs. (#395)

• Levin amendment to provide for a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for legislation to eliminate offshore tax shelters used by large corporations. (#396)

• Rockefeller amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to protect pension and health care benefits from retired UMWA workers. (#397)

• Merkley amendment to increase investment in high-impact breakthrough clean energy technologies through the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy of the Department of Energy. (#398) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Toomey amendment to repeal the tax increase on catastrophic medical expenses created by Obamacare. (#399)

• Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure election integrity by requiring a valid government-issued photographic ID for voting in federal elections. (#400)

• Coburn  amendment to eliminate program duplication, fragmentation, and overlap within the 15 “financial literacy” programs under 13 departments and agencies identified by 2012 report of the Government Accountability Office, entitled “Opportunities to reduce Duplication, Overlap and Fragmentation, Achieve Savings, and Enhance Revenue”. (#401)

• Coburn amendment to eliminate program duplication, fragmentation, and overlap within the 160 “housing assistance” programs under 20 Departments and Agencies identified by the Government Accountability Office’s 2012 report, “Opportunities to reduce Duplication, Overlap and Fragmentation, Achieve Savings, and Enhance Revenue”. (#402)

• Coburn amendment to eliminate program duplication, fragmentation, and overlap within the 253 Department of Justice grant programs under 10 departments and agencies identified by the Government Accountability Office’s 2012 report, “Opportunities to reduce Duplication, Overlap and Fragmentation, Achieve Savings, and Enhance Revenue”. (#403)

• Coburn amendment to eliminate duplication in 15 Federal unmanned aircraft programs. (#404)

• Coburn amendment to eliminate program duplication, fragmentation, and overlap within the 209 “Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math” programs under 13 Departments and Agencies identified by the Government Accountability Office’s 2012 report, “Opportunities to reduce Duplication, Overlap and Fragmentation, Achieve Savings, and Enhance Revenue”. (#405)

• Coburn amendment to prohibit individuals with adjusted gross income over $1,000,000 from receiving unemployment compensation. (#406)

• Coburn amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to reduce Social Security for individuals with an adjusted gross income of $1,000,000 or more to extend the solvency of the Social Security Trust Fund. (#407)

• Coburn amendment to reduce the federal matching rate for Medicaid expansions and prevent the federal government from making an unrealistic promise to States to fund any State’s expansion of the Medicaid program at a higher level of federal reimbursement.  (#408)

• Coburn amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to sunset the provision of Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that increases payments to hospitals in a few States by reducing payments to the majority of States through the Medicare hospital wage index. (#409) Agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 68 – 31.

• Coburn amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure that health savings account-eligible high deductible health plans are considered to be qualified health plans and an employer offer of coverage for purposes of compliance with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. ( #410)

• Coburn amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to furlough Federal employees with seriously delinquent tax liability. (#411)

• Coburn amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund that addresses the nonprofit postal discount for State and national political committees. (#412) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Coburn amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to reform the Lifeline program of the Federal Communications Commission to require minimal payments from subsidized cell phone recipients. (#413)

• Coburn amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to eliminate tax loopholes and special interest tax breaks for the PGA tour, the NFL, NASCAR, Hollywood, fish tackle box manufacturers, and Eskimo whaling captains. (#414)

• Coburn amendment to eliminate or defund congressional committees that do not conduct oversight of the programs within its jurisdiction. (#415)

• Coburn amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to eliminate non-defense related spending by the Department of Defense. (#416) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 43 – 56.

• Coburn amendment to reduce the burden on middle-class taxpayers by eliminating subsidies for the purchase of health insurance to wealthier Americans with annual incomes above 300 percent of the federal poverty level. (#417)

• Coburn amendment to achieve at least $630 billion in health care savings, the same level of health care savings proposed by the President’s own Bipartisan Fiscal Commission, often Bowles-Simpson plan. (#418)

• Coburn amendment to prevent the Food and Drug Administration from approving prescription opioids that are subject to abuse without requiring abuse-deterrent formulations. (#419)

• Coburn amendment to eliminate improper or overlapping payments made by the Social Security Disability Insurance and Unemployment Insurance programs. (#420)

• Coburn amendment to prohibit the use of supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP) benefits to purchase junk food. (#421)

• Coburn amendment to establish a database for all unclassified reports submitted to Congress. (#422)

• Coburn amendment to prohibit the sale of Federal grants.  (#423)

• Baucus amendment to include livestock and specialty crop disaster assistance programs in a deficit-neutral reserve fund for a farm bill. (#424)

• Merkley amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to expanding, enhancing, or otherwise improving science, technology, engineering, mathematics, or career and technical education. (#425)

• Cardin amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for the establishment of robust and uniform accountability guidelines for United States foreign assistance programs (#426)

• Cardin amendment to provide additional resources for the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, to provide a report on strategies for the most efficient use of resources to develop financial goals, build wealth and increase consumers’ financial knowledge. (#427)

• Cardin amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to protecting drinking water and providing clean water for communities. (#428)

• Udall (NM) amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to general education, which may include fully funding the impact aid program under title VIII of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and supporting school programs for children living on Federal property and Indian land. (#429)

• Levin amendment to provide for a deficit-reduction reserve fund to provide for legislation to eliminate offshore tax shelters used by large corporations. (#430) As modified agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Mikulski amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to require equal pay policies and practices. (#431) Agreed to by Voice Vote.

• Stabenow amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to protect Medicare’s guaranteed benefit and to prohibit replacing guaranteed benefits with the House passed budget plan to turn Medicare into a voucher program. (#432). Agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 96 – 3.

• Murray amendment to amend the resolution. (#433) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 40 – 59.

• Toomey amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to increasing funding for the inland waterways system. (#434) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Hoeven amendment to provide additional resources to maintain funding for research activities conducted by the Agricultural Research Service and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture. (#435)

• Hoeven amendment to ensure funds are available in fiscal year 2014 for the Tribally Controlled Postsecondary Career and Technical Institutions Program administered by the Department of Education and provide for an offset. (#436)

• Burr amendment to provide regulatory relief to small businesses so that they can grow American jobs and strengthen our nation’s economy. (#437)

• Shaheen amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to protect women’s access to health care, including primary and preventative health care, family planning and birth control, and employer-provided contraceptive coverage, such as was provided under the Affordable Care Act (PL 111-148). (#438) Agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 56 – 43.

• Murray amendment to amend the deficit-neutral reserve fund for tax relief for low and middle income families. (#439) Agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 99 – 0.

• Sanders amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to the need to vigorously combat global warming by establishing policies that transform the energy system of the United States away from fossil fuels and into energy efficiency and sustainable energy. (#440)

• McCaskill amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to end earmarks and reform the process of amendment the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to temporarily suspend or reduce duties, in a manner that creates a transparent, streamlined, and merit-based process for the business community. (#441)

• Casey amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for State and local law enforcement. (#442) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Lee amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to establish reasonable deadlines for processes under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. (#443)

• Lee amendment to eliminate all funds made available to the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service for purposes related to the listing, management, and enforcement of regulations relating to the Greater and Gunnison Sage grouse. (#444)

• Lee amendment to eliminate all funds made available to the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service for the management and enforcement of regulations pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 1973 as the regulations relate to the Utah Prairie Dog, a species that exists only in the State of Utah. (#445)

• Lee amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to end all energy subsidies on a technology-neutral basis. (#446)

• Kirk amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to the expansion of the Visa Waiver Program. (#447)

• Hatch amendment to protect Americans from a $1,000,000,000,000 tax increase and provide for pro-growth revenue-neutral competitive international business tax reform. (#448)

• Hatch amendment to protect Americans from a $1,000,000,000,000 tax increase and provide for pro-growth revenue-neutral individual tax reform. (#449)

• Hatch amendment to protect charitable organizations, home owners with mortgages, state and local taxpayers, retirement plan participants, and other taxpayers from the tax increase in the President’s budget’s proposed 28% cap on tax benefits and to prevent the revenue raised being used to pay for more spending by protecting these widely-available and applicable tax benefits from being capped at 28% or otherwise limited to pay for new spending as part of any tax increase. (#450)

• Hatch amendment to protect the incentive for innovative research and development, including the jobs produced from American’s cutting edge research-based businesses, by making permanent the research and development tax credit, preventing any repeal or limitation on the existing incentive and to prevent the revenue raised being used to pay for more spending as part of any tax increase. (#451)

• Paul amendment to create a point of order against legislation relating to a gun ban treaty. (#452)

• Cardin amendment to provide for a deficit-neutral reserve fund on health care improvement. (#453) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Murphy amendment to improve a deficit-neutral reserve fund to invest in clean energy and preserve the environment. (#454)

• Brown amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to establish a national network for manufacturing innovation that leverages private and public sector investments for proven United States based manufacturing industries. (#455) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Boxer amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure that the taxpayer-funded salaries of government contractor employees do not exceed the taxpayer-funded salary earned by the President of the United States. (#456)

• Vitter amendment to create a point of order against legislation relating to the regulation of greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide emission, until the date on which the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Energy Information Administration, and Secretary of Commerce certify in writing that each of the People’s Republic of China, the Republic of India, and Russia have proposed, implemented, and enforced measures requiring greenhouse gas, including carbon dioxide, emission reductions that are substantially similar to carbon dioxide emissions reductions proposed for the United States. (#457)

• Manchin amendment to create a point of order against legislation that would establish an unrealistic or unattainable standard for carbon dioxide emissions from new coal-fired electricity-generating units. (#458)

• Collins amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for sensible regulatory reform, including cost-benefit analysis for major and significant rules, good guidance practices, and relief from first-time, nonharmful paper work violations. (#459)

• Johanns amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to require the Inspector General of Environmental Protection Agency to report to Congress twice a year on whether the Environmental Protection Agency has met regulatory reporting and regulatory agenda-setting requirements. (#460)

• Johanns amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to require the Environmental Protection Agency to provide technical assistance and data, modeling, or technical support to any State that requests it pursuant to the development of a State implementation plan under the Clean Air Act. (#461)

• Johanns amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure that agency guidance documents are subject to resolutions of disapproval in the same manner as agency rules. (#462)

• Johanns amendment to amend the deficit-neutral reserve fund to reform the use of guidance documents in agency rulemaking to consider their effect on manufacturing. (#463)

• Johanns amendment to encourage proposals related to cooperative federalism with State agencies that issue permits to manufacturing facilities. (#464)

• Johanns amendment to provide for the reform of rulemaking (including regulatory agenda publishing). (#465)

• Johanns amendment to clarify a provision relating to the deficit-neutral reserve fund to promote manufacturing in the United States. (#466)

• Cruz amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for prohibiting drone killings of citizens of the United States on United States soil, absent an imminent threat. (#467)

• Cruz amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to eliminate corporate welfare. (#468)

• Cruz amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for choice-based scholarships for low-income children. (#469)

• Cruz amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to preventing the Federal Government from owning more than 50 percent of the land of any State. (#470)

• Cruz amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to reduce foreign assistance to Egypt and increase funding for an east coast missile defense shield. (#471) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 25 – 74.

• Cruz amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund  to challenge costly Federal regulations. (#472)

• Cruz amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prohibit millionaires from being eligible for or receiving any means-tested welfare payments. (#473)

• Heller amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to increasing the use of audits by Federal agencies to recover erroneous Government payments and using the money for deficit reduction. (#474)

• Heller amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to protect and uphold Second Amendment rights and ensure that the Department of Justice may not create or compile a national registry of firearms. (#475)

• Heller amendment to ensure proper access to services for women and veterans and members of the Armed Forces. (#476)

• Heller amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to authorize the provision of per diem payments for the provision of services to dependents of homeless veterans under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. (#477) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Franken amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to increasing access to dual enrollment, concurrent enrollment, or early college high schools for low-income students. (#478)

• Franken amendment to provide an additional use for the deficit-neutral reserve fund for higher education. (#479) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• Schumer amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prohibit the TSA from changing its policy regarding the prohibition against passengers carrying small, non-locking knives onto commercial airplanes. (#480)

• Carper amendment to provide funds for infrastructure improvements necessary for continued progress on the Department of Homeland Security headquarters consolidation.  (#481)

• Reed amendment to provide funding for low-income weatherization and energy efficiency retrofit programs. (#482) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• Udall (NM) amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to hardrock mineral royalty and fee reform. (#483) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• McCaskill amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to improving or eliminating the Lifeline program, which has grown by more than 250 percent in 5 years because of waste, fraud, and abuse, an inability to enforce a one-line per household requirement, and inclusion of prepaid wireless providers. (#484)

• ·         Manchin amendment to create a point of order against legislation that would allocate any savings achieved through spending cuts or new revenue that are not included in the concurrent resolution on the budget for any purpose other than deficit reduction or investment in the Nation’s infrastructure. (#485)

• ·         Coburn amendment to create a deficit-neutral reserve fund that addresses the nonprofit postal discount for State and national political committees. ( #486)

• ·         Murkowski amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to authorizing advanced appropriations for the Indian Health Service and Indian Health Facilities accounts of the Indian Health Service, without raising new revenue. (#487)

• ·         Murkowski amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide assistance for fishery disasters declared during 2012. (#488)

• ·         Enzi amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to phase-in any changes to the individual or corporate tax systems. (#489) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• ·         Enzi amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for legislation that requires each federal agency to identify and prioritize each of its programs, projects, and activities. (#490)

• ·         Enzi amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to protecting and restoring money in established, dedicated funds. (#491)

• ·         Coats amendment to express the sense of the Senate that the budget supports enabling prompt action relating to the Presidential exemption for the rule of the Environmental Protection Agency commonly known as the Mercury and Air Toxins Standard for affected electric utility steam generating units that need additional time to install the major emissions control equipment, construct replacement generation, or implement other mitigation measures in order to ensure the reliability of the grid. (#492)

• ·         McConnell amendment to provide for critical transportation infrastructure projects, including bridge construction, through offsets provided by repeal of the Davis-Bacon Act. (#493)

• ·         Hoeven amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to promote investment and job growth in the United States manufacturing, oil and gas production, and refining sectors through the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline. (#494) Agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 62 – 37.

• ·         Thune amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for generational accounting that would provide a score of the fiscal and economic impacts that proposed policy changes would have on current and future generations. (#495)

• ·         Schumer amendment to provide tax relief for victims of recent federally-declared major disasters. (#496)

• ·         Cantwell amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to prioritizing funds for fishery stock surveys and stock assessments to support, protect, and develop the United States fishing economy. (#497)

• ·         Warren amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for disaster assistance for commercial fishery failures. (#498)

• ·         Manchin amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure that abundant domestic energy sources and technologies can meet present and future greenhouse gas emissions rules. (#499) agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• ·         Lautenberg amendment to crack down on tax cheats and reduce the deficit by at least $2.5 billion in FY 2014. (#500)

• ·         Manchin amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to the commercialization of technologies such as carbon capture, carbon storage, and other carbon utilization technologies required for coal and natural gas electric generating units (EGUs) to meet proposed and future greenhouse gas regulations. (#501)

• ·         McCaskill amendment to redirect funding from a Department of Defense contractor bonus program, which benefits a limited class of subcontractors, to deficit reduction. (#502)

• ·         McCaskill amendment to ensure that funds available for mental health services for individuals eligible to purchase a weapon are not reduced. (#503)

• ·         McCaskill amendment to strengthen the deficit-reduction reserve fund for Government reform and efficiency. (#504)

• ·         Feinstein amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to strengthening privacy protections for Americans from drones. (#505)

• ·         Wicker amendment to preserve funding for the National Guard Counterdrug School Program and State Counterdrug Support Programs and to provide an offset. (#506)

• ·         Cruz amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prevent the regulation of the size and quantity of food and beverages. (#507)

• ·         Cruz amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to restore federalism in labor regulation. (#508)

• ·         Paul amendment to reduce Federal spending by discontinuing reimbursement of Federal employees for conducting union business while on duty as a Federal employee. (#509)

• ·         Wicker amendment to provide additional resources to the Department of Justice transitional housing program to provide shelter for domestic abuse survivors. (#510)

• ·         Feinstein amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to reduce firearm violence. (#511)

• ·         Lautenberg amendment to express the sense of the Senate regarding the utilization of high-capacity ammunition magazines. (#512)

• ·         Landrieu amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to providing infrastructure funds to high-performing public elementary schools and secondary schools, including high-performing public charter schools. (#513)

• ·         Coats amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to enable prompt action relating to the Presidential exemption for the rule of the Environmental Protection Agency commonly known as the Mercury and Air Toxins Standard for affected electric utility steam generating units that need additional time to install the major emissions control equipment, construct replacement generation, or implement other mitigation measures in order to ensure the reliability of the grid. (#514) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 46 – 53.

• ·         Alexander amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund related to the education of low-income children, which may include allowing funding under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to follow children from low-income families to the school the children attend. (#515)  Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 39 – 60.

• ·         Alexander amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to repeal the medical device tax and the wind production tax credit. (#516)

• ·         Toomey amendment to ensure that Medicare savings are used to make Medicare more solvent. (#517)

• ·         Murkowski amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve related to authorizing advanced appropriations for the Indian Health Service and Indian Health Facilities accounts of the Indian Health Service, without raising new revenue. (#518)

• ·         Donnelly amendment to amend the deficit-reduction reserve fund for Government reform and efficiency to establish a process to review Federal programs that are inefficient or duplicative. (#519)

• ·         Heinrich amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to strengthening the economy by accelerating the transfer of technologies from Department of Energy laboratories to the marketplace. (#520)

• ·         Lee amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to supporting the reauthorization of the Payments in Lieu of Taxes program at levels roughly equivalent to property tax revenues lost to the presence of Federal land. (#521) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• ·         Lee amendment to express the sense of the Senate regarding a balanced budget amendment. (#522)

• ·         Alexander amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to repeal the medical device tax and the wind production tax credit. (#523)

• ·         McCaskill amendment to provide for the transfer of $500,000,000 from spending on wasteful and unsustainable infrastructure projects in Afghanistan to funding for road and bridge projects in the United States. (#524)

• ·         Durbin amendment to establish a deficit neutral reserve fund to increase funding for the National Institutes of Health.  (#525)  Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure election integrity by requiring a valid government-issued photographic ID for voting in federal elections. (#526) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 44 – 54

• ·         Boozman amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to protect private property rights by discouraging eminent domain abuse by State and local governments, while providing for continued economic development assistance eligibility where eminent domain is used for customary purposes, including to acquire property for public use, for public rights of way, to acquire abandoned property, or to remove immediate threats to public health and safety, and to provide that any savings will reduce the deficit. (#527) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• ·         Murkowski amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to authorizing advanced appropriations for the Indian Health Service accounts, without raising new revenue. (#528)

• ·         Inhofe amendment to create a point of order against per flight user fees on general aviation. (#529)

• ·         McConnell amendment to protect Americans from a massive tax increase. (#530)

• ·         McConnell amendment to modify the deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to trade and international agreements to promote and protect United States agricultural exports. (#531)

• ·         Wicker amendment to de-fund the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) through reductions to the International Affairs account, with the savings to be used for increased funding for the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) and deficit reduction. (#532)

• ·         Grassley amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to ensure accountability and transparency the Bureau of Consumer and Financial Protection. (#533)

• ·         Toomey amendment to reduce costs for American manufacturers and make U.S. factories more competitive by repealing punitive import taxes on inputs that are not produced domestically. (#534)

• ·         Toomey amendment to repeal the tax increase on catastrophic medical expenses created by Obamacare. (#535) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 45 – 54.

• ·         Shaheen amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to providing assistance to small businesses in accessing foreign markets. (#536)

• ·         Tester amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to authorizing children who are eligible to receive health care furnished under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to retain such eligibility until age 26. (#537) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• ·         Wicker amendment to increase the vote threshold required to waive a budget point of order prohibiting unfunded mandates in excess of limit. (#538) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure that peer review panels have sufficient real world expertise. (#539)

• ·         Vitter amendment to create a point of order against legislation that would lengthen the delivery time of any surface transportation project. (#540)

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide for legislation that would improve the solvency of the Highway Trust Fund by amounts resulting from the imposition of fees on any Federal agency that fails to meet specified deadlines relating to surface transportation projects under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. (#541)

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to improve the solvency of the Highway Trust Fund by the amounts provided by the net increase in Federal revenues from onshore and offshore domestic energy leasing on Federal land. (#542)

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prevent the Attorney General from prosecuting energy producers for incidental killings of migratory birds until such time as the Attorney General submits to Congress a report. (#543)

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to require congressional approval of national monuments. (#544)

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to reinstate the reservation of use and occupancy and special use permits to conduct certain commercial operations. (#545)

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prevent the Secretary of the Interior from offering offshore wind leases if the royalty rate for the leases is below the value of the wind production tax credit. (#546)

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to vacate any major rule for which private or alias emails were used in the drafting process. (#547)

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure that agency advisory boards have a balanced perspective. (#548)

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prohibit the Environmental Protection Agency from promulgating certain rules. (#549)

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to require the issuance by all Federal agencies of mandatory guidelines on the use of electronic communications. (#550)

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure increased domestic offshore leasing and production on the vast outer Continental Shelf resources of the United States. (#551)

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for economic-impact analyses for a species listed under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 at the time of the listing decision. (#552)

• ·         Vitter amendment to create a point of order against legislation that raises the prices of energy during high unemployment. (#553)

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prohibit the payment of attorneys’ fees under settlement agreements for civil litigation under the Clean Air Act or the Endangered Species Act of 1973 when impacted State and local government are not a party to the settlement agreement. (#554)

• ·         Vitter amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service from engaging in closed-door settlement agreements that ignore impacted States and counties. (#555)

• ·         Coburn amendment to eliminate program duplication, fragmentation, and overlap within the 80 economic development programs under 4 departments and agencies identified by the Government Accountability Office. (#556)

• ·         Coburn amendment to eliminate program duplication, fragmentation, and overlap within the 53 “support for entrepreneurs” programs under 4 departments and agencies identified by the 2012 report of the Government Accountability Office, entitled “Opportunities to Reduce Duplication, Overlap and Fragmentation, Achieve Savings, and Enhance Revenue”. (#557)

• ·         Coburn amendment to eliminate program duplication, fragmentation, and overlap within the 17 “preparedness grants” within the Federal Emergency Management Agency identified by the Government Accountability Office’s 2012 report, “Opportunities to Reduce Duplication, Overlap and Fragmentation, Achieve Savings, and Enhance Revenue”. (#558)

• ·         Coburn amendment to eliminate federal duplication and consolidate the 94 Federal green building programs spread across 11 different federal agencies. (#559)

• ·         Coburn amendment to eliminate federal duplication and consolidate the 14 Federal diesel emissions programs at 3 different federal agencies. (#560)

• ·         Coburn amendment to eliminate duplication, fragmentation, and overlap within the 45 Federal early learning and child care programs and 5 tax expenditures within 8 departments. (#561)

• ·         Coburn amendment to eliminate duplication, fragmentation, and overlap within 18 domestic food assistance programs. (#562)

• ·         Coburn amendment to eliminate duplication, fragmentation, and overlap within 80 teacher quality programs at ten different federal agencies. (#563)

• ·         Coburn amendment to eliminate duplication, fragmentation, and overlap within 30 food safety programs at 15 different federal agencies. (#564)

• ·         Coburn amendment to eliminate duplication, fragmentation, and overlap within 18 Defense language and cultural training programs. (#565)

• ·         Coburn amendment to eliminate duplication, fragmentation, and overlap within 21 nuclear nonproliferation programs. (#566)

• ·         Coburn amendment to provide for a reduction in the number of general and flag officers of the Armed Forces commensurate with reductions in the strengths of the Armed Forces. (#567)

• ·         Coburn amendment to require increased compliance by the federal agencies with the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006, the online database of federal spending, USASpending.gov. (#568)

• ·         Coburn amendment to eliminate and consolidate program duplication within the six federal counter-IED efforts. (#569)

• ·         Isakson amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prevent funding to implement, create, apply or enforce certain standards for initial bargaining unit determinations governed by the National Labor Relations Board. (#570)

• ·         Isakson amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prevent funding to promulgate a regulation relating to the definition of “fiduciary” by the Department of Labor. (#571)

• ·         Menendez amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide tax credits to businesses that finance training for long-term unemployed persons in programs that produce certificates or credentials. (#572)

• ·         Menendez amendment to express the sense of the Senate on the creation of a future Smithsonian American Latino Museum. (#573)

• ·         Menendez amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to close wasteful big oil tax subsidies for the Big 5 oil companies and invest in energy conservation. (#574)

• ·         Menendez amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to close wasteful big oil tax subsidies for the Big 5 oil companies and reduce the deficit. (#575)

• ·         Udall (CO) amendment to express the sense of the Senate that a reasonable path to a balanced budget is the foundation for economic growth and prosperity. (#576)

• ·         Blumenthal amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for legislation to ensure operation of all contract air traffic control towers receiving funding through the contract tower program of the Federal Aviation Administration as of March 20, 2013, and that are located at airports still in service as of the date of the introduction of such legislation. (#577) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• ·         Durbin amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure marketplace fairness by allowing States to enforce State and local use tax laws. (#578) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• ·         Barrasso amendment to express the sense of the Senate that the levels of public debt outlined in section 101(5) of this resolution are responsible, reasonable, and in a sustainable place and that increasing the public debt to $24,364,925,000,000 through fiscal year 2023 under that section will be good for our children and grandchildren. (#580).

• ·         Baucus second-degree amendment to Durbin amendment #578, to exempt remote sales of business inputs. (#581) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• ·         Wyden second-degree amendment to Durbin amendment #578, to provide that uniforms required for employment may be exempted. (#582)

• ·         Baucus second-degree amendment to Durbin amendment #578, to provide that food and school supplies may be exempted.  (#583)

• ·         Tester second-degree amendment to Durbin amendment #578, to require a sufficient physical nexus to the State. (#584)

• ·         Wyden second-degree amendment to Durbin amendment #578,  to prohibit disparate treatment between domestic and foreign businesses. (#585)

• ·         Baucus second-degree amendment to Durbin amendment #578,  to require a calculation of the cost of the legislation to businesses. (#586)

 

• ·         Wyden amendment to provide that pharmaceutical drugs and healthcare products may be exempted. (#587)

• ·         Baucus second-degree amendment to Durbin amendment #578, to prohibit the use of Federal taxpayer dollars for enforcement. (#588)

• ·         Ayotte second-degree amendment to Durbin amendment #578, to allow States to protect their own businesses against audit and tax collection enforcement by other States. (#589)

• ·         Shaheen second-degree amendment to Durbin amendment #578, to allow States to opt out of any requirement to transfer data.  (#590)

• ·         Wyden second-degree amendment to Durbin amendment #578,  to provide that natural resources and building supplies may be exempted.  (#591)

• ·         Wyden second-degree amendment to Durbin amendment #578, to provide that such legislation may require no increase in State sales taxes before 2023. (#592)

• ·         Johnson (SD) amendment to establish a scorekeeping rule to ensure that increases in guarantee fees of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac shall not be used to offset provisions that increase the deficit. (#593) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• ·         Sanders amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to the Older Americans Act of 1965, which may include congregate and home-delivered meals programs, or other assistance to low-income seniors. (#594) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• ·         Franken amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to community bank and small institution regulations, including Basel III capital standards. (#595)

• ·         Cardin amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to invest in surface transportation projects. (#596)

• ·         Scott amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to the prohibition of taxpayer dollars and resources being used to automatically deduct union dues from the pay of Federal employees. (#597) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 43 – 56.

• ·         Hoeven amendment to ensure funds are available in fiscal year 2014 for the National Science Foundation’s Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) Program and to provide an offset. (#598)

• ·         Hoeven amendment to ensure funds are available in fiscal year 2014 for the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s HOME Investment Partnership Program and to provide an offset. (#599)

• ·         Ayotte amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund for the improvement of the ground-based missile defense system of the United States to better defend against ballistic missile threats from the Middle East. (#600)

• ·         Cruz amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to eliminate corporate welfare. (#601)

• ·         Cruz amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to prevent the Federal regulation of the size and quantity of food and beverages. (#602)

• ·         Ayotte amendment to eliminate wasteful spending on the essential air service program and airport improvement grants for rural airports. (#603)

• ·         Wicker amendment to reduce budget authority for Function 800 for the purpose of eliminating the Office of the Financial Research. (#604)

• ·         Wicker amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to reform Federal employee retirement programs. (#605)

• ·         Menendez amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide funding for the purposes of embassy or diplomatic security. (#606)

• ·         Whitehouse second-degree amendment to Blunt #261, to ensure that any revenues resulting from a Federal carbon tax or fee are returned to the American people. (#607)

• ·         Boozman amendment to create a point of order against legislation relating to expanding the workforce of the Environmental Protection Agency to enforce regulations. (#608)

• ·         Cochran amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to health care for low-income populations. (#609)

• ·         Cochran amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to improving or delaying regulations promulgated by the Department of Health and Human Services that reduce access to health care. (#610)

• ·         Gillibrand amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to presumptive benefits coverage for exposure to Agency Orange for Vietnam veterans who served in the territorial seas of the Republic of Vietnam. (#611)

• ·         Bennet amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to address health care access problems in rural areas, which may include access to primary care and outpatient services, hospitals, or an adequate supply of providers in the workforce. (#612

• ·         Kirk amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to sanctions with respect to Iran. (#613)

• ·         Sessions amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to achieve savings by prohibiting illegal immigrants or illegal immigrants granted legal status from qualifying for federally subsidized health care. (#614) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 43 – 56.

• ·         Baucus amendment to improve the deficit-neutral reserve fund for America’s servicemembers and veterans. (#615)

• ·         Wicker amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to ensuring Federal green building policies are based on the best available science, do not arbitrarily discriminate against products or source materials from the United States, and achieve cost-effective savings in energy and water use without raising new revenue. (#616)

• ·         Wicker amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to reforming the management of natural resources on Federal land and waters to create jobs, further reduce dependence on OPEC imports, and protect the environment. (#617)

• ·         Wyden amendment to provide for the enforcement of the trade remedy laws of the United States. (#618) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• ·         Menendez amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to helping homeowners and small businesses mitigate against flood loss. (#619) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• ·         Manchin amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to upholding Second Amendment rights and prohibiting the establishment of a national firearm registry. (#620)

• ·         Manchin amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to strengthen American infrastructure. (#621)

• ·         Boxer amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to protecting the interests of the United States in making a decision relating to the Keystone XL pipeline. (#622) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 33 – 66.

• ·         Rubio amendment to express the sense of the Senate on underutilized facilities of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and their potential use. (#623) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

• ·         Johanns amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to restore families’ health care flexibility by repealing the $2,500 federal cap on flexible spending accounts and the requirement that individuals obtain a prescription from a physician before purchasing over-the-counter drugs with their own flexible spending account or health savings account dollars in order to safeguard families’ capacity to plan ahead for the rising cost of care, make their own health care decisions, and ensure children who have special needs can receive adequate care. (#624) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

• ·         Johanns amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to restore families’ health care flexibility by repealing the $2,500 federal cap on flexible spending accounts and the requirement that individuals obtain a prescription from a physician before purchasing over-the-counter drugs with their own flexible spending account or health savings account dollars in order to safeguard families’ capacity to plan ahead for the rising cost of care, make their own health care decisions, and ensure children who have special needs can receive adequate care. (#625)

• ·         Johanns amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to restore families’ health care flexibility by repealing the $2,500 federal cap on flexible spending accounts and the requirement that individuals obtain a prescription from a physician before purchasing over-the-counter drugs with their own flexible spending account or health savings account dollars in order to safeguard families’ capacity to plan ahead for the rising cost of care, make their own health care decisions, and ensure children who have special needs can receive adequate care. (#626)

• ·         Hatch amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to protect Medicare’s guaranteed benefits and provide future beneficiaries health care options like those available to Members of Congress. (#627)

• ·         Vitter amendment to save billions in lowered prescription drug costs by stopping anti-competitive pay-for-delay deals between pharmaceutical and generic drug corporations that stall generic drugs to market. (#628)

• ·         Grassley amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to respecting the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens while providing truly meaningful solutions to the issue of gun violence. (#631)
• Fisher amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to protect women’s access to health care, including primary and preventive care, in a manner consistent with protecting rights of conscience. (#630)  Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 44 – 55.    ·
  ·
• Whitehouse amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to ensuring that all revenue from a fee on carbon pollution is returned to the American people. (#646) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 41 – 58
• Menendez amendment to call for a comprehensive approach for wage index reform. (#651) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 49 – 50.
• Hoeven amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to increases in aid for tribal education programs, including the Tribally Controlled Postsecondary Career and Technical Institutions Program administered by the Department of Education. (#655) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.
• Kirk amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to sanctions with respect to Iran. (#671) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.
• Murkowski amendment to permit a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide assistance for fishery disasters declared during 2012. (#672) Agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.
• Lee amendment to create a point of order against legislation that would further restrict the right of law-abiding Americans to own a firearm. (#673) Ruled out of order by the chair.
• Vitter amendment to end “Too Big To Fail” subsidies or funding advantage for Wall Street mega-banks (over $500 billion in total assets). (#689) Agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 99 – 0.
• Warner amendment to repeal or reduce the estate tax, but only if done in a fiscally responsible way. (#693) Agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 80 – 19.
• Merkley amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to facilitate the criminal prosecutions of financial institutions operating in the United States, regardless of size. (#696) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.
• Cruz amendment to create a point of order against any legislation that would provide taxpayer funds to the United Nations while any member nation forces citizens or residents of that nation to undergo involuntary abortions. (#702) Not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 38 – 61.
• Menendez amendment to address the eligibility criteria for certain undocumented immigrant individuals with respect to certain health insurance plans. (#705) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.
• Leahy amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure that the United States will not negotiate or support treaties that violate Americans’ Second Amendment rights under the Constitution of the United States. (#710) Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

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What just happened in the Senate.

After a very chaotic week on Capitol Hill, I wanted to write you with an update on what just happened in the Senate today.

First and foremost: the oil industry‘s Senators did not manage to pass legislation that would force President Obama to build Keystone XL.

Because you — and people like you, all across the country — jumped into action this week, they backtracked and instead held a vote on a nonbinding resolution that says it would be nice to build the pipeline, but doesn’t actually do much about it. For that vote, they got the stomach-churning number of 62 Senators to vote with them. As usual, the ones who had taken the most money from the fossil fuel industry lined up to cast their votes—the cosponsors of the bill, on average, had taken $807,000 in dirty energy money.

Now, this amounts to symbolic chest thumping by the oil industry: showing just how many Senators they can get to jump when told to. It’s not the worst thing that could have happened, but it reminds everyone why, in one recent poll, congress had approval ratings lower than head lice and colonoscopies — even on the symbolic stuff, they can’t get it together to stand up to the oil industry guys cutting them checks.

In a certain way though, this vote couldn’t come at a better time. Congress is going on break, and for the next two weeks, these 62 Senators will be back in their home states, doing things like meeting with constituents — people like you.

Home states are where some of the most heroic work took place the last week — in Minneapolis, say, where 150 350MN.org activists showed up on very short notice at Sen. Klobuchar’s office in a snowstorm to tell her to vote no on Keystone (and she did, it should be added).

Here’s how the Senators in New Jersey voted (‘yes’ in this case being a vote for the pipeline):

Frank Lautenberg – Didn’t vote

Robert Menendez – No

If you’re interested in following in the fine example of those leaders who held actions at their senators offices, you have a chance in the next two weeks.

We’re looking for people who can step up to lead, and then we’ll put the 350 network into action to get people to join you. If you want to lead an action, just click here to tell us when you’d like to do so: act.350.org/survey/kxl-senate-accountability-2013/

Look, there are two ways to react to a democracy for sale. One is to walk away in disgust, which is what the Koch Brothers count on. The other is to stand up and say: no more. If you visit your Senator, take some pictures or some video so we can share them around. It’s time to build this broader fossil fuel resistance.

And remember, Capitol Hill is not the center of the world. Around the country this week our friends at Tar Sands Blockade have been actively targeting Keystone investors; faith groups have been hauled off to jail in front of the White House to protest the pipeline; and the divestment campaign has expanded off college campuses and into municipal and state governments.

The movement is doing amazing stuff — we just need more of it. We can’t outspend the oil industry, but we can out-organize them. In fact, we have to.

Visit the Sustainable Action Network.

Related articles

• MSNBC; Thank you for taking action. (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Keep Keystone XL and Coal Out of the Budget (sunsetdaily.wordpress.com)
• Senate Vote on Keystone Imminent (scienceblogs.com)
• Senators Cashing in on Oil Money Push for Keystone XL Approval With New Bill (alternet.org)
• URGENT: Keystone XL Vote Likely In Senate Next Week (firstheretheneverywhere.wordpress.com)
• Big Oil Attempts to End-Run Keystone XL with Congressional Approval (commondreams.org)
• The House Passed the $1Trillion Spending Bill (turbotax.intuit.com)
• Kings Co. Supervisor Valle rules out state Senate run (fresnobee.com)
• Kieran Suckling: Obama Voters to Obama: Reject Keystone XL (huffingtonpost.com)
• Senate Vote to Reveal ‘Scoreboard’ of Keystone XL, Big Oil Lackeys (commondreams.org)