Washington, D.C. – This week, Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet, a member of the Senate Climate Solutions Caucus, joined the National Climate Adaptation and Resilience Strategy Act (NCARS), a bipartisan bill introduced by U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) to streamline the federal response to climate hazards that threaten human health and well-being, critical infrastructure, and natural systems.
“From longer and more extreme wildfire seasons to intensifying drought, climate change is affecting Coloradans in every corner of our state,” said Bennet. “This bipartisan legislation takes an important step to ensure we are working together at the federal level to help safeguard Colorado communities and build climate resilience as climate change continues to threaten our economy, health, and way of life.”
Recent increasingly severe weather events are a stark reminder that communities across the country face rising risks. Colorado just had its shortest season on record without a wildfire, and more red flag fire warnings have already been issued this month than during any other April in the past 15 years. Last week, Bennet surveyed a property in Boulder County where debris removal from the December 2021 Marshall Fire is in progress. The Marshall Fire was the most destructive fire in Colorado’s history, causing over $680 million in damage and destroying more than 1,000 homes and dozens of businesses and public facilities.
The National Climate Adaptation and Resilience Strategy Act would:
- Require the development of a whole-of-government National Climate Adaptation and Resilience Strategy, which would ensure a unified vision for the U.S. government’s response to climate hazards and direct the swift implementation of equitable climate resilience solutions across federal agencies;
- Authorize a Chief Resilience Officer in the White House to direct national resilience efforts and lead the development of the U.S. Resilience Strategy; and
- Authorize interagency resilience Working Groups and a non-federal Partners Council with representatives from frontline communities to strengthen strategic development and facilitate communication between federal agencies and state, local, tribal, and territorial governments.
A list of statements of support is available HERE.
In addition to Bennet, Coons, and Murkowski, this legislation is co-sponsored by U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.).
Companion legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives is co-sponsored by U.S. Representatives Scott Peters (D-Calif.), María Salazar (R-Fla.), John Curtis (R-Utah), and Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.).
The bill text is available HERE. A one-page summary of the bill is available HERE.