BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Bellingham’s mayor says he’s ready to start the conversation about a tax aimed at combatting climate change.
Seth Fleetwood told a City Council committee meeting Monday, November 8th, that it would fulfill a key component of the city’s 2018 Climate Action Plan.
“One of the proposals is the creation of a climate action fund,” says Fleetwood.
He says work on efficiencies in residential and commercial buildings, transportation and other areas affecting emissions will take dedicated financing.
And he says such a fund would attract more state and federal financing.
“If there’s a dedicated fund here in the City of Bellingham, as has been the case with our home fund, with greenways, with transportation benefits,” says Fleetwood. “With all of the important funds that reflect our community’s values. We leverage that money dramatically.”
Fleetwood says the city definitely has a role to play in what is really a global issue.
“We need to do our part here in Bellingham and hopefully be a model for other communities,” says Fleetwood. “Show the way, if you will.”
He’s asking the council to work with his staff to create an initiative that could go before city voters sometime next year.