U.S. jurisdictions take steps to reform ‘dishonest’ bail system
It is common for judges to set bail based solely on the charges a defendant faces, without regard to the defendant’s criminal history or financial means.
Good News Links
Reversing course, E.P.A. says fracking can contaminate drinking water
The Environmental Protection Agency has concluded that hydraulic fracturing, the oil and gas extraction technique also known as fracking, has contaminated drinking water in some circumstances, according to the final version of a comprehensive study first issued in 2015.
Bill Gates is heading a $1 billion clean energy venture fund
He’s got several billionaire pals on board.
Nearly two dozen of the world’s most successful business leaders, entrepreneurs, and venture capitalists will invest up to $1 billion in a fund led by Microsoft-co-founder Bill Gates that aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to almost zero by financing emerging clean energy technology.
Fossil fuel divestment funds double to $5 trillion in a year
The value of investment funds committed to selling off fossil fuel assets has jumped to $5.2tn, doubling in just over a year.
The Economic Security Project is committing $10 million to study universal basic income in the U.S.
Partially tested in various places in the 1960s and 1970sincluding areas of the US, Canada, and IndiaUBI gives everyone a guaranteed minimum payment as a way to, in theory, reduce poverty and improve health, eduction, and other benefits.
Over 100 companies sign the Equal Pay Pledge
Forty-four new employers have signed on to the Equal Pay Pledge, bringing the total number to over 100 businesses who have embraced equal pay policies.
Portland adopts surcharge on CEO pay in move vs. income inequality
Moving to address income inequality on a local level, the City Council in Portland, Ore., voted on Wednesday to impose a surtax on companies whose chief executives earn more than 100 times the median pay of their rank-and-file workers.
New Jersey will no longer collect loans from families of dead students
After a ProPublica and New York Times investigation into New Jersey’s student loan program, Gov. Chris Christie stayed silent. On Monday, he signed a reform bill ending its most onerous practice.
In victory for protesters, Army halts construction on Dakota pipeline
The Army Corps of Engineers has denied a permit for the construction of a key section of the Dakota Access Pipeline, granting a major victory to protesters who have been demonstrating for months.
