BREAKING… the Trump administration has just officially finalized a new rule gutting the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

This is very bad. Under the new rule, agencies will no longer need to consider climate change when approving major infrastructure proposals. Other projects could sail through review without disclosing increases in air pollution and other kinds of waste discharge. And the public will lose opportunities to provide input, as the law intended.

This attack is deeply racist: those most likely to be affected by the pollution caused by environmentally hazardous projects are Black, Indigenous, Latinx, and low-wealth communities. The law was passed 50 years ago to reinforce these communities' right to influence these major projects. Gutting NEPA will shut out these frontline voices.

Our last shot is for Congress to block the implementation of the rule change — but we need to mobilize immediately. We're in the middle of our Membership Drive, and a donor has agreed to contribute $500,000 to run campaigns just like this one — on the condition that 10,000 LCV members also pitch in before the end of July.

Friend, will you make an emergency gift of just $5 today to renew your membership and help us reach this goal?

Since Trump took office, NEPA has allowed the environmental movement to block or stall a series of major polluting projects — including Keystone XL — because the administration failed to weigh climate change into their proposals.

Bottom line, ending NEPA has huge, HUGE implications. We can't let Trump completely gut it without a fight — but the window to stop him is short, and it's not the only fight we're up against. Just this morning we sounded the alarm that the Trump administration is weighing a veto over funding for the EPA — see below for more details.

We can't do this without you. Thank you, friend, for everything you do.

— Gene

Friend…things are moving very quickly. The House has indicated that they are aiming to pass 2021 budget bills by the end of this month — meaning that things are going to start moving at a breakneck speed.

The House is expected to vote in the coming days on the environmental spending bill that would increase funding for the EPA and Interior Department. Trump's own EPA administrator is pushing Trump to veto the bill — it's virtually unheard of.

This sets up a major fight in Congress, and these next two weeks are going to be absolutely critical. We are mounting a major pressure campaign to ensure that this bill passes the House as-is. We need your help: a major donor has just agreed to contribute $500,000 to LCV — on the condition that 10,000 LCV members also pitch in before the end of July.

We're asking every LCV supporter for help. In reaching this goal, small donations count the same as big ones. Renewing your LCV membership is just $5 right now — and it could be enough to put us over the top.

Friend, will you renew your membership today to help us reach this critical goal?

This is totally unprecedented. Budget bills are considered "must-pass" — they are required in order to fund the government, and normally they pass without too much fanfare. But the way Trump sees it, this could be his last chance to push through some of his most damaging policies before the election is in full swing — and he is going to push hard for the Senate to force a long list of damaging amendments into the final bill.

As it is now, the House bill would be a real slap in the face to Trump. It restores funding to areas he has been pushing to gut, and it blocks efforts to roll back pollution standards for coal plants and oil and gas drillers.

Increasing funding to the EPA is critical right now. Recently, Trump has been systematically undermining the EPA by rolling back safety measures that regulate the release of toxic chemicals and suspending enforcement of our bedrock environmental rules. As long as these suspensions are in place, polluters can get away with just about anything: Fracking operations can spill waste into drinking water. Oil refineries can release carcinogens, completely unchecked. Industrial sites can emit as much air pollution as they want to.

These attacks on the EPA aren't just damaging to the environment — they are direct attacks on public health, and they disproportionately affect Black, Indigenous and Latinx communities that already suffer from the harmful effects of pollution. These same communities are now experiencing far higher death rates from COVID-19.

Trump has been pushing to make those rules permanent and further undercut EPA's scientists — and the upcoming environmental spending bill could be a sneaky way to do it. Friend, I can't stress this enough: we cannot stay silent while the fate of the EPA — and the health of our communities — is on the line. We must put the pressure on and ensure Trump doesn't get his way.

The best thing you can do right now, friend, is to renew your membership for 2020 — it only costs $5! »

Thank you for being a part of this important and historic work. We couldn't do any of this without supporters like you.

Sincerely,

The Team at LCV