Save the Enviroment - Save the EPA Campaign Website
The U.S. EPA is under attack!
Special interests and ideologues in Congress are proposing budget cuts that will prevent the EPA from protecting the environment and public health, placing our nation's most vulnerable citizens at risk. The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) National Council of EPA Locals #238 believes that EPA's mission -- To Protect Human Health and the Environment -- is worth fighting for, so we're speaking out with our "Save the Environment - Save the EPA" campaign.
Never before has EPA been threatened with budget cuts of this size. The threat today is to the health of our nation's citizens and environment. It's up to all of us to save the EPA from special interest groups plotting to cut EPA's budget and hamstring its ability to enforce our nation's laws.
The Truth About EPA
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Funding for the EPA in FY2011 has already been cut by $1.5 billion from FY2010's budget of $10.2 billion.
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Additional cuts to the EPA's budget are being proposed by Congress that would bring EPA's budget for FY2012 to about $7.1 billion.
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Approximately seventy percent (70%) of EPA's funding goes to contractors, as well as State, Local, Municipal and Tribal Authorities to help fund the federal environmental effort. Cutting EPA's budget directly impacts our state budgets and economies.
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The Congressional "Super Committee" is looking to cut trillions of dollars from the federal budget and we need to act now to protect the publics' health and maintain funding for critical health programs, especially EPA.
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Sound science should be the basis for decisions about environmental protection. We want to ensure that the EPA continues to be able to protect the environment so future generations of Americans do not inherit a polluted country and planet that threatens everyone's health and survival.
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The Clean Air Act is expected to prevent over 230,000 premature deaths, 200,000 heart attacks, 2.4 million asthma attacks, 120,000 emergency room visits, and 5.4 million lost school days by 2020.
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Multiple polls demonstrate that an overwhelming majority of Americans agree that Congress should not stop the EPA from doing its job to reduce life-threatening pollution.
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There is no connection between EPA regulations and loss of American jobs. Rather, this is a campaign of misinformation about what EPA does, how it does its job and the effect that EPA's actions has on jobs and business interests.. In point of fact, the Gross Domestic Product or GDP has grown by over 200 percent since the inception of the EPA. An entire industry of environmental consultants, engineers, products and services has been created by EPA regulations...technology that can result in a positive trade balance.
What Can You Do?
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Send your message to the Super Committee! Click on this link and follow the instructions.
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Please sign our petition to Save the Environment - Save the EPA!
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We strongly urge you to make your voice heard by calling Congress today.
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Dial 1-888-775-3148 to reach the U.S. Capitol switchboard and ask for your Senators and Congressional Representative by name, or provide your ZIP code. Tell your lawmakers:
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"My name is ______________ and I live in _____________. I am calling today to urge Senator/Representative to protect the public's health and the environment by protecting the EPA's funding. Cutting the EPA's budget any further will place the nation's most vulnerable citizens at risk. Continuing investments in public health today will save lives and health care dollars both now and in the future."
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[Please leave your name, home address and phone number so the office can follow up with you.]
REFERENCE DOCUMENTS
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Resources
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