New York voters approved a $4.2 billion environmental bond on Tuesday meant to provide funding for mitigating climate change and for improving resilience to extreme weather events.
The ballot measure, the Clean Water, Clean Air, and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act, had been widely expected to pass. As of Wednesday morning, it had been approved by 59% of voters, according to data from the New York State Board of Elections.
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It was the largest borrowing referendum on ballots in this year’s midterm elections.
The bond act is designed to strengthen resilience from disasters caused by climate change and will fund green building projects, invest in land conservation, and help areas recover from extreme weather events.
It includes $1.5 billion in funds for climate change mitigation, $1.1 billion to fund restoration projects and help reduce flood risk, and $650 million for water quality improvement and infrastructure.
The bond also includes a pledge to use 35% of the funds to aid disadvantaged communities or those disproportionately affected by climate change.
The last time New York had an environmental bond on ballots was 1996 when voters also approved a $1.75 billion package under then-Gov. George Pataki.
The new bond ranks as one of the largest environmental funding packages in U.S. history, following California’s $7.5 billion water bond plan passed in 2014.
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Passage of the New York bond was praised by climate groups, labor unions, and Democrats in the state, who had helped lead the push for its approval.
“The passage of this measure will pay for projects that protect clean drinking water, tackle climate change, and conserve natural resources while creating jobs and delivering environmental justice across New York State,” Jessica Ottney Mahar of the Nature Conservancy, told the Gotham Gazette late Tuesday.
