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Congresswoman Veronica Escobar (TX-16) released the Climate Crisis Advisory Committee Framework and reintroduced her legislation H.R. 5204, the Climate Adaptation Plan Act of 2023 (CAP Act), inspired by the report and the work of her Climate Crisis Advisory Committee (CCAC). This legislation directs the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator to establish a grant program to facilitate the development of climate adaptation plans for local and tribal governments like the Climate Crisis Advisory Committee Framework. Climate adaptation plans make recommendations to local governments by centering resilience measures, environmental justice, economic prosperity, and community-driven collaboration. 

“Like many communities across the country, El Paso is setting records this year as our fight against the irreversible effects of climate change only grows more urgent,” said Congresswoman Escobar. “The damage that will be caused by climate change is inevitable, but we must be proactive to mitigate its intensity. I’m hopeful that my bill will encourage local and tribal governments in low-income communities to apply and use federal funding to implement climate adaptation plans across the country. I’m grateful to the members of the CCAC whose work created our publication.”

Established in February 2021, the Climate Crisis Advisory Committee (CCAC) consisted of meetings with local stakeholders and experts to explore ideas and create sustainable recommendations for El Paso to reduce climate damage in both the near and long term. The recommendations given to El Paso from CCAC serve as the example framework in the CAP Act for grants to be available to local and tribal governments across the country to implement their own recommendations and ultimately adopt their own climate adaptation plans.

Full text of the bill can be found here and full text of the report can be found here.