Eric's Blog

This year’s economic-stimulus package contained a huge range of ideas and programs in its many hundreds of pages and hundreds of billions of dollars of appropriations. Few of those ideas and programs have been as immediate a hit as the so-called “Cash for Clunkers” plan, which gives car-buyers vouchers worth up to $4,500 for trading in their low-mileage vehicle for one that’s significantly more fuel-efficient.

It’s been so big a hit, in fact, that in just one week, it exhausted the $1 billion Congress initially set aside, while depleting the supplies of available vehicles on at least some dealers’ lots here in California. Buyers loved it, the auto companies loved it, dealers loved it and the environment will love it.

I love it, too. It’s the sort of smart, pragmatic, market-aware approach to a set of thorny problems that leverages a modest amount of government money as a catalyst that achieves several important goals at once:

· Need to get the economy going? The government incentives were big enough to encourage a wide swathe of people to open their wallets in the still-stumbling economy and buy a new car.

· Need to stabilize a shaky domestic car industry? Nothing helps like a huge sale that doesn’t hurt your profit margins and clears out inventory. July was the best month of the year so far for carmakers, so good they may need to get those factories building more of the highly efficient vehicles that we need to have an internationally competitive auto industry.

· Need to improve the air? The eligibility requirements, tiered to provide some consumer choice and flexibility, required that older, high-emission cars would be exchanged for vehicles with significantly better fuel efficiency. In fact, U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein and Susan Collins said federal data showed the 250,000 people who’ve already used the program bought cars with mileage improvements that averaged nearly 10 miles more per gallon, much higher than initially projected.

· Need to restart global conversations about controlling greenhouse gases? The Cash for Clunkers program will not only reduce the amount of vehicle-created greenhouse gases blamed for global warming, it sets a strong example for other countries as the Obama Administration lobbies for renewed talks on this complex but vital issue.

· Need to reduce dependence on overseas oil? Less fuel use equates to less need to import oil, and less need to incidentally finance the operations of so many problematic oil-rich but repressive governments.

· Need to help reeling local governments save jobs and provide vital services? The taxes generated by increased vehicle sales will boost the coffers of cities, counties, states and other local government entities.

So, with the lever of a comparatively modest amount of incentive money, the Cash for Clunkers program has been a huge hit, helping move the country a bit closer to achieving an array of important goals. I hope that Congress will quickly re-up the program to ensure continuity and certainty for consumers and dealers, to the benefit of the country.

Just as importantly, I hope we continue to look for other smart solutions. We need more programs that pragmatically achieve important goals by leveraging market forces with intelligent leadership and catalyzing investments. We have a lot to get done and need to be smart, and quick, about it.

This week, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power finished distributing 2 compact fluorescent lightbulbs to all 1.2 million LA City households. While the CFL distribution program cost the DWP $3 million, they estimate that the city-wide use of CFLs over time will ultimately save the utility $61.3 million in fuel costs.

That’s precisely the sort of pro-active policy that government can take to save both money AND energy and make Los Angeles greener one household…and one lightbulb…at a time.

What’s the next energy-saving program that Los Angeles should invest in?

Thanks to the stimulus package, Los Angeles is due to receive $37 million in Energy Efficiency Block Grants, money that we intend to spend on projects that reduce our carbon footprint and put people to work retro-fitting buildings, installing renewable energy sources, painting rooves white, etc.

Do  you know of projects or organizations that are doing this work but simply need more funding? Do you have any thoughts on which projects we should be investing in? What are they doing at your workplace to make your office greener? Here are some initiatives that we’re considering funding with the block grant funds,  I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

• Development of an Energy Efficiency and Conservation Strategy and Technical Consultant Services to assist in the development of a strategy to reduce Los Angeles’s carbon footprint.

• Residential and Commercial Building Energy Audits.

• Financial Incentive Programs and Mechanisms for energy efficiency improvements such as energy savings performance contracting, on-bill financing, and revolving loan funds.

• Grants to nonprofit organizations and governmental agencies for the purpose of performing Energy Efficiency Retrofits.

• Energy Efficiency and Conservation Programs for Buildings and Facilities.

• Development and Implementation of Transportation Programs to conserve energy.

• Building Codes and Inspections to promote building energy efficiency.

• Energy Distribution Technologies that significantly increase energy efficiency, including distributed resources, combined heat and power, and district heating and cooling systems.

• Material Conservation Programs including source reduction, recycling, and recycled content procurement programs that lead to increases in energy efficiency.

• Reduction and Capture of Methane and Greenhouse Gases generated by landfills or similar waste-related sources.

• Energy efficient Traffic Signals and Street Lighting.

• Renewable Energy Technologies on Government Buildings.

We had a great night at the Avalon in Hollywood last night. Thanks everyone for your support and for coming out to celebrate with us. Yesterday was the culmination of a trip that lasted for nearly a year, but it is merely the latest walk of an ongoing journey we started some eight years ago. Thank you for walking with me and for walking with one another. The next walk on our journey forward begins today.

Here’s some video of my speech from last night:

Via my Twitter feed, how I got around without my car yesterday:

Foot 8:48 AM Feb 27th

Bus. 5-6 second wait for it to arrive. Totally empty (but I am at beginning of line). Busiest DASH line in city by ridership usually. 8:52 AM Feb 27th

Good and crowded now. Just picked up folks from Cathedral Center on Echo Park Ave who were getting food at the church pantry. 8:59 AM Feb 27th

Foot. Walking under the freeway. Transferring to Metro.9:00 AM Feb 27th

Bus. 6 min wait.9:09 AM Feb 27th

At City Hall.9:22 AM Feb 27th

Bike.about 21 hours ago

Subway.about 17 hours ago

Carpooling.about 17 hours ago

Car-free Fridays are the last Friday of every month. I wrote about the first one a month ago. It’s not always easy to leave your car at home, but the benefits to traffic congestion, the environment and your health make it completely worthwhile. If you haven’t already, I hope you’ll try it with me next month.

Learn more at LA-Bike.org.

What if you could help reduce the pollution in Los Angeles, cut down the congestion on the roads AND get in shape all at the same time? That’s precisely the thinking behind Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition’s Car-Free Friday campaign, which kicked off Friday morning with a bike ride from the Hollywood/Western Metro station to City Hall downtown.

As LACBC Executive Director Jen Klausner put it on Friday, the idea is to:

…encourage people to leave their cars at home on the last Friday of every month. It seems to be a general observation that Fridays are the most congested day here in the L.A. area and so we want to see if we can’t make a collective difference. People will find that if they give cycling or walking a try for their commute that they’re not only improving the environment in L.A. but they’re also doing themselves a big favor.

I’m personally a big fan of biking. Several of my staff bike to work on a regular basis, especially since our office policy is for everyone to leave their car at home at least once a week. I applaud the LACBC for their efforts to get the entire city to try it. It’s no easy task in a car-obsessed city like Los Angeles, of course, but it’s my hope that the more accessible, appealing and safe we make biking as an option, the more people will choose to cheat on their cars.

To that end, we’ve launched NavigateHollywood.com, which is a “way-finding” website with great resources for those looking to bike, walk or take public transportation around the Hollywood area.

In addition, look for new “Sharrows” coming soon on Fountain and Vermont Blvds to help make these streets safer for bikers. I talked a little bit about them before the bike ride on Friday.

For me, this is about improving the environment, public health and the quality of life for everyone traveling throughout Los Angeles, whether in a car, on a bike or by foot. These are the values that have guided me as Councilmember for the last eight years and I hope to continue fighting to improve the way of life for all Angelenos during the next four.

See more of the great LACBC event below:

Sign up for Navigate Hollywood e-mail and SMS alerts.

Find out more about Car-Free Fridays and biking in L.A. at LA-Bike.org.