Governor Schwarzenegger took a notable step towards ensuring that federal stimulus dollars don’t go to waste when he appointed Los Angeles Controller (and Democrat) Laura Chick to act as watchdog over the estimated $50 billion in federal stimulus money to be disbursed to cities and organizations in California.   Ms. Chick has a proven record of exposing waste and incompetence in Los Angeles, and her expertise could be just what the doctor ordered to make sure that billions coming to California for stimulus projects don’t end up building a bridge to nowhere.

The question now is who is going to ensure that the unprecedented level of funds coming into the state actually create long-term, “high-road” green collar jobs and job pathways to help us transition to a new, green economy — not  reinforce the old, broken system of unequal access to good jobs and meager investment in sustainable green solutions to energy and economic woes.

In the absence of a Governor-appointed “Green Stimulus Watchdog,” CLCV is taking the lead on this front along with a host of diverse organizations in forming the California Green Stimulus Coalition – comprised of organized labor, environmental organizations, social and economic justice advocates, and workforce development specialists.  To date, this is the only such coalition in the nation, and our power lies in the diversity of organizations working together toward five common goals:

• Ensuring that stimulus dollars further environmental goals;
• Investing in people and communities to realize high-quality job creation;
• Investing for long-term gain, not only short-term fixes;
• Investing with equity so that all Californians have equal access to new economic opportunities; and
• Investing in the open, so that all decisions are transparent and accountable.

Along with our partners at the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, Apollo Alliance, Natural Resources Defense Council, State Building and Construction Trades, PolicyLink, and many more, the CA Green Stimulus Coalition is working to ensure that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) is but a downpayment on California’s bright, prosperous, and sustainable future.