Local Government Sustainability Policies and Programs Tad McGalliard, Director of Sustainability International City/County Management Association (ICMA)

ICMA Organizational Overview Professional association for chief administrative officers and other local government managers Research, publications, technical assistance, professional development services International and Domestic Center for Sustainable Communities 2

Center for Sustainable Communities Current Projects 3

Solar America Communities Partnership— Objectives and Expected Outcomes Five year partnership between U.S. DOE’s Solar America Communities program and teams led by ICMA and others Overarching goal—increase the amount of solar PV installed capacity in the United States National workshops and dealmaking events Communication and outreach to local government, community and business stakeholders 4

Local Governments and Sustainability Survey National survey (summer 2010) of 8,569 local governments with populations over 2,500 25% response rate with 2,176 local governments responding 100+ questions in 12 major categories –Policy actions, recognition programs, water, recycling & solid waste management, energy, transportation, buildings and land use, social inclusion, and other actions (local products and food, procurement, public land for public benefits, etc) 5

Local Governments and Sustainability Survey The survey was developed with the input of ICMA’s Center for Sustainable Communities, the Center for Urban Innovation, Arizona State University’s Global Institute of Sustainability (ASU GIOS), the Alliance for Innovation, and others. Survey distribution was conducted through a collaboration of ICMA, ASU GIOS and the Sustainable Cities Network, a multi-jurisdictional partnership. 6

7 Strong indicators that sustainability is a priority in many place with some interesting variability The economy and financial matters dominate concerns of local government CEOs Local Governments and Sustainability Survey

Traditional local government programs continue to be implemented –Recycling of some type reported in a majority of communities –Increasing number of energy audits of government owned buildings –Procurement of fuel efficient or alternative fuel fleet vehicles –Complete streets and active living (bike lanes, sidewalks, walking trails) –Urban agriculture including farmers markets and community gardens Local Governments and Sustainability Survey 8

Loacl Governments and Sustainability Survey Other areas not as widely implemented –Teleworking and altered work schedules –Alternative energy generation –Use of grey water and/or reclaimed water –Few programs to encourage eco-friendly development –Few incentive or regulatory programs for “sustainable” construction 9

Findings-Energy and Environment Most local governments consider the environment and energy conservation key priorities: A full 70% of respondents called “energy conservation” a “priority” (46%) or a “high priority” (24%). Similarly, nearly two-thirds of local government respondents (62%), consider the “environment” a priority, including 21% of respondents calling it a “high priority.” 10

Findings-Sustainability Planning While governments are conscious of the need for sustainability however specific plans are slower to take hold: When asked what specific planning actions related to sustainability and energy conservation they had taken, only 29% had adopted a resolution outlining specific policy goals – and that was the most popular response. Additionally, most localities had yet to assign dedicated staff to sustainability efforts (27% had), establish specific benchmarks related to sustainability(19%), established or appointed a task force (28%), or provided a budget specifically for their efforts (16%). 11

Findings-Climate Change Actions to limit greenhouse gases are not widespread – except for tree planting: While a full 45% of localities have a plan for tree preservation and planting, only 14% had established greenhouse gas limits for the local government, less than 10% for the community- at-large, and only about 3% for local businesses. 12

Findings-Energy Conservation Localities show progress embracing energy conservation actions in and out of government: A strong majority (63%) of localities had conducted energy audits of government buildings, and 56% had upgraded or retrofitted office lighting, and 44% had increased the purchase of fuel efficient government vehicles. Meanwhile, few localities reported the establishment of public/private partnerships to establish energy reduction measures in local small businesses – only 6% reported doing so. 13

Findings-Water Actions to improve and protect water are more advanced, but still not widespread: 34% of localities had taken actions to conserve the quantity of water from aquifers, 33% had adopted a water price structure to encourage conservation, 30% had set limits on impervious surfaces on private property, and 28% had provided other incentives to encourage local water conservation behavior. 14

Findings-Green Building Approximately one-in-ten localities require LEED or Energy Star certification for all new government construction. Close to 8% require LEED or Energy Start certification for all retrofit government projects. 15

Some Additional Findings Most local governments seem to be in the early stages of addressing “the issue of our age” Most communities surveyed reported some actions but the number and range is limited About one in six are setting the pace with extensive activities City and country governments seem to be at the same level of adoption on average, although emphasis based on responsibilities are slightly different The larger the population the more that a local government seems to do Cities and counties that use council-manager form of government tend to be more active 16

More Findings Sustainability initiatives should be targeted to community needs first and foremost Goal setting and performance measurement are important for all communities Policy priorities matter-what’s important to some communities may not be as much of an issue in others. 17

Current Data and Forthcoming Reports Detailed data sets available for purchase at bookstore.icma.org Summary data available at icma.org/sustainabilitysurvey Two research articles both authored by Jim Svaara, Arizona State University –The Early Stage of Local Government Action to Promote Sustainability (MYB 2011) –Breaking New Ground: Promoting Environmental and Energy Programs in Local Government (May 2011) 18

Breaking New Ground Sponsored by IBM Center for the Business of Government PDF Available at icma.org/sustainability 19

Upcoming Research--HUD Follow up research on community and social indicators of local government policies and programs One of 6 HUD funded research programs Partnering with Arizona State University and the Alliance for Innovation 20

Upcoming Research--Solar First national survey on local government policies and programs related to solar PV Initial information available in November

Tad McGalliard, Director of Sustainability ICMA (office) (cell) tad.mcgalliard (skype) 22