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| 2 | 2 | | HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 4585 FILED ON: 9/26/2023 |
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| 3 | 3 | | HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 4143 |
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| 4 | 4 | | The Commonwealth of Massachusetts |
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| 5 | 5 | | _________________ |
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| 6 | 6 | | PRESENTED BY: |
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| 7 | 7 | | Brandy Fluker Oakley |
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| 8 | 8 | | _________________ |
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| 9 | 9 | | To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General |
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| 10 | 10 | | Court assembled: |
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| 11 | 11 | | The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill: |
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| 12 | 12 | | An Act establishing the Environmental Justice Trust Fund. |
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| 13 | 13 | | _______________ |
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| 14 | 14 | | PETITION OF: |
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| 15 | 15 | | NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Brandy Fluker Oakley12th Suffolk9/26/2023Attorney General Andrea Joy |
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| 16 | 16 | | Campbell |
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| 17 | 17 | | 1 Ashburton Place, Boston, MA 021089/26/2023 1 of 2 |
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| 18 | 18 | | HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 4585 FILED ON: 9/26/2023 |
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| 19 | 19 | | HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 4143 |
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| 20 | 20 | | By Representative Fluker Oakley of Boston, a petition (subject to Joint Rule 12) of Brandy |
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| 21 | 21 | | Fluker Oakley and Andrea Joy Campbell (Attorney General) for legislation to establish a trust |
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| 22 | 22 | | fund to promote environmental justice in the Office of the Attorney General. The Judiciary. |
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| 23 | 23 | | The Commonwealth of Massachusetts |
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| 24 | 24 | | _______________ |
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| 25 | 25 | | In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court |
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| 26 | 26 | | (2023-2024) |
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| 27 | 27 | | _______________ |
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| 28 | 28 | | An Act establishing the Environmental Justice Trust Fund. |
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| 29 | 29 | | Whereas, The deferred operation of this act would tend to defeat its purpose, which is to |
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| 30 | 30 | | establish forthwith a trust fund to promote environmental justice, therefore it is hereby declared |
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| 31 | 31 | | to be an emergency law, necessary for the immediate preservation of the public convenience. |
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| 32 | 32 | | Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority |
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| 33 | 33 | | of the same, as follows: |
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| 34 | 34 | | 1 Chapter 29 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section |
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| 35 | 35 | | 22AAAAAAA the following section:- |
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| 36 | 36 | | 3 Section 2BBBBBBB. (a) For the purposes of this section, the term “disadvantaged |
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| 37 | 37 | | 4community” shall mean a community in Massachusetts bearing disproportionate economic, |
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| 38 | 38 | | 5health, or environmental burdens, including, but not limited to, poverty, high unemployment, air |
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| 39 | 39 | | 6and water pollution, disproportionate heat exposure, lack of access to green space, and presence |
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| 40 | 40 | | 7of hazardous and solid waste and material, as well as high incidence of cardiovascular and |
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| 41 | 41 | | 8respiratory disease and high rates of mortality. |
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| 42 | 42 | | 9 (b) There shall be established and set up on the books of the commonwealth a separate |
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| 43 | 43 | | 10trust fund to be known as the Environmental Justice Trust fund, which shall be administered by 2 of 2 |
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| 44 | 44 | | 11the division of environmental protection within the office of the attorney general, established |
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| 45 | 45 | | 12under section 11D of chapter 12. |
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| 46 | 46 | | 13 (c) Expenditures may be made from the fund, without further appropriation: (i) to fund |
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| 47 | 47 | | 14the restoration of any natural resource or the investigation, remediation or mitigation of any |
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| 48 | 48 | | 15environmental pollution or harm on or at any real property located in a disadvantaged |
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| 49 | 49 | | 16community; (ii) for any project to benefit the community health or well-being, whether to |
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| 50 | 50 | | 17address economic, environmental, or other health needs, of a disadvantaged community; or (iii) |
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| 51 | 51 | | 18to contribute to an academic or government-funded research project related to environmental |
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| 52 | 52 | | 19protection or conservation of natural resources in a disadvantaged community. |
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| 53 | 53 | | 20 (d) The fund shall be credited with: (i) appropriations of other money authorized or |
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| 54 | 54 | | 21transferred by the general court and specifically designated to be credited to the fund: (ii) funds |
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| 55 | 55 | | 22from public or private sources, including, but not limited to gifts, grants, and donations; (iii) |
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| 56 | 56 | | 23payments from settlements, judgments, fines or penalties not designated by law for other specific |
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| 57 | 57 | | 24statutory purposes in any action brought by the attorney general under section 11D of chapter 12 |
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| 58 | 58 | | 25or under any provision of any environmental statute that the attorney general may enforce |
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| 59 | 59 | | 26providing for a civil penalty for a violation of such provision; and (iv) any interest earned on |
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| 60 | 60 | | 27such money. Funds in the trust that remain unexpended at the end of a fiscal year shall not revert |
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| 61 | 61 | | 28to the general fund and shall be available for expenditure in subsequent fiscal years. |
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