Senator Jeffords Introduces Green Building, Climate Change Legislation

U.S. Senator Jim Jeffords (I–VT) recently introduced the High-Performance Green Building Act of 2006, which would authorize spending of $50 million over five years to codify existing federal green building initiatives and enhance federal promotion of green building. The bill would require environmental and efficiency standards for all buildings procured by the federal government, and it would direct funding to the General Services Administration to oversee efforts of government agencies to construct and use green buildings. The Global Warming Pollution Reduction Act, separate legislation recently introduced by Jeffords, would require the U.S. to reduce its carbon emissions to 1990 levels by 2020, among other rules. Jeffords is not running for re-election this year, and prospects for this legislation being enacted during this legislative session were unknown at press time.