Smart Growth America President and CEO Geoff Anderson will testify before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works next week to discuss the Brownfields Utilization, Investment, and Local Development (BUILD) Act.
If passed, the bill would help communities across the country clean up contaminated and abandoned land and put it back into productive use.
“The BUILD Act is a win for everyone—Congress, local governments, business owners and taxpayers,” said Anderson in March, when the bill was introduced. “Brownfields restoration drives economic growth while giving local governments the flexibility to pursue the projects they need the most. Transforming a community’s financial sinkhole into a new business or residential building is a no-brainer.”
“I’m consistently ranked as the most conservative member of the Senate,” said Senator Jim Inhofe (R-OK), in a video address to the National Brownfields Coalition, “so it’s very rare that I have the opportunity to speak positively about any program that comes out of the EPA. But the Brownfields program is a conservative program. It leverages public finances with private investors to clean up contaminated areas that would otherwise be abandoned so they can redeveloped into something productive and profitable.”
The hearing will take place on Wednesday, July 24, 2013 at 2:00 PM EDT. Check the Committee’s hearing schedule for more information.
Take action
Brownfields redevelopment creates great places on land that was once unusable. The BUILD Act would give communities across the country the option to use this valuable tool. Use the form below to ask your senators to voice their support for this legislation.
Ask your Senator to sign on to the BUILD Act: Click here to take action.