Implementing a Green New Deal (GND) will require the mobilization of numerous investment strategies from all levels of government. There are a host of reliable and equitable funding strategies that have already found success across the country and around the world: divestment and local reinvestment, municipal green bonding, local vacancy taxes, fees on anti-ecological practices, public banking, participatory budgeting, and other forms of community-controlled capital. There are many funding options at different levels of government that alliances can explore to make a GND possible. This section covers federal, state, and local options and models for funding.
Local governments have a lot of power to fund GND efforts and climate policies. From green bonding, to equitable utility fee structures, to local carbon taxes and thoughtful municipal reinvestments, there is a lot that can be done even without the support of the state and federal government. Below are some examples of funding mechanisms used to enact climate justice.
The state can both block GND efforts through preemption and enable local legislation. Learning how to use state resources and get around financial, technical, and legal barriers is crucial to funding a GND at the local level while enabling our governments to make the investments and policy decisions we need now in order to reach bold climate goals later.
The federal level is currently working on numerous pieces of GND legislation, including a GND for Cities Act that would grant $1 trillion to localities and Tribes GND initiatives. If these pass, it is equally important that this funding be distributed equitably. This section includes information about how to access current funds available through the federal government, as well as what to anticipate with future legislation.
