Daily Breeze - President Obama's Clean Power Plan Gains Support from Gov. Jerry Brown, L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti

Statement

Mayor Eric Garcetti and Gov. Jerry Brown hailed President Barack Obama's Clean Power Plan announced today in a bid to address climate change, saying the nation needs less debate on the topic and more action.

"Today's Clean Power Plan will add to the benefits we're already seeing from our cities' strong leadership against climate change, including cleaner air and thousands of green jobs," Garcetti said in a joint statement with Houston Mayor Annise Parker.

Garcetti, Parker and Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter co-founded the Mayors National Climate Change Action Agenda, which called for strong federal action on climate change.

The Clean Power Plan unveiled by Obama requires states to meet strict goals for reducing carbon emissions, based on each state's consumption. It also includes incentives for states that take early steps to deploy renewable energy systems.

Brown called the plan "bold and absolutely necessary."

"California is fully engaged in tackling climate change, and we look forward to working with other states and the White House as we implement these new mandates," Brown said.

According to the governor's office, the plan will cut pollution from existing power plants about 32 percent below 2005 levels in the next 15 years. Brown said the state is already on track to meet and exceed the plan's goals, with plans in place to reduce emissions to 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030.

Some Republicans -- including presidential hopefuls Sen. Marco Rubio, R- Florida, and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush -- have already criticized the plan, saying it will drive up electricity costs.

Bush said the plan "runs over state governments, will throw countless people out of work and increases everyone's energy prices."

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, has already called on states not to implement the plan.

Predictably, Democratic lawmakers were more receptive to the plan.

"California is already well ahead of what the president has announced today and will undoubtedly serve as a model for states transitioning from coal to cleaner energy," Rep. Janice Hahn, D-San Pedro, said. "Under the president's plan, coal use will drop to 27 percent of our energy source -- by comparison, coal provides less than 1 percent of California's energy, proving that we can use the move to clean energy to create jobs while cleaning the air we breathe and creating a better future for our children."

Rep. Judy Chu, D-Pasadena, said the plan "will not only slow the rate of climate change, but will also contribute to our economy and improve our health."

Marcie Edwards, general manager of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, said the utility is already working to eliminate coal as a source of energy while investing in solar and other renewable energy sources.

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