ELI’s Center for State and Local Governance develops adaptable model governance tools that make it easier for state and local governments in the United States to advance environmental solutions. Our principal collaborator in this effort has been NRDC. You can find each set of model governance tools below.
Background
Each project starts with extensive best practices research and expert interviews and culminates in a set of model governance tools. The primary resource is generally the model ordinance, executive order, policy, or law—intended to provide template legal language that can be adapted and enacted by a municipality or state. The “with commentaries” versions offer additional context and analysis. The models are typically accompanied by a background memorandum, a model resolution—which can be adopted by legislative bodies to express support for a given measure or issue—and a slide presentation that gives an overview of the model.
Substantial food waste is generated from the roughly seven billion meals that are served each year to the nation’s 45.4 million children enrolled in K–12 public schools. Measures to reduce food waste in schools can provide environmental benefits, increase meal consumption, lead to substantial cost savings, and help combat food insecurity. The ELI/NRDC Model State Law on Reducing Food Waste in K–12 Public Schools provides a range of measures to advance food waste reduction that can be adapted to individual states’ contexts. For a deeper dive, check out this blog.
To explore the Model and each accompanying resource, follow the links below:
Even once a municipality has reduced zoning barriers (see the previous model), community composters may still encounter regulatory barriers—such as nuisance determinations—that can hinder their ability to establish and sustain operations. The NRDC/ELI/ILSR Model Municipal Ordinance on Advancing Community Composting is intended to remove unreasonable regulatory barriers to and provide opportunities for community composting. For a deeper dive, check out this blog.
To explore the Model and each accompanying resource, follow the links below:
Community composting is designed to meet local needs, serve local interests, and engage the community. Unfortunately, municipal zoning codes can present unintended barriers for community composters—for example, by treating composting facilities the same way as large waste facilities. The NRDC/ELI Model Municipal Zoning Ordinance on Community Composting is intended to establish and govern community composting as a permissible land use across five basic zoning district categories. For a deeper dive, check out this blog.
To explore the Model and each accompanying resource, follow the links below:
Pay-As-You-Throw Programs (PAYT) programs establish a system in which households are charged based on the amount of trash they dispose of, rather than paying a flat fee for unlimited trash disposal. The NRDC/ELI Model Ordinance Establishing a Pay-As-You-Throw Program for Residential Municipal Solid Waste outlines the fundamental PAYT program components and includes language to adopt PAYT that can be tailored to the wide variety of municipal waste management arrangements. For a deeper dive, check out this blog.
To explore the Model and each accompanying resource, follow the links below:
Local governments are well-positioned to address our nation’s food waste problem, and to lead by example in doing so. The NRDC/ELI Model Executive Order on Municipal Leadership on Food Waste Reduction offers municipalities possible measures to reduce the amount of food wasted throughout municipal operations, highlight the importance of reducing food waste, and demonstrate measures that businesses may voluntarily replicate. For a deeper dive, check out this blog.
To explore the Model and each accompanying resource, follow the links below:
Local governments are involved with managing waste, regulating food service businesses, and addressing food insecurity among residents. Accordingly, food waste and surplus food generation data can help inform municipal food waste reduction efforts. The NRDC/ELI Model Ordinance on Mandatory Reporting for Large Food Waste Generators is intended to require large generators, including businesses, nonprofit organizations, and municipal governmental subunits, to measure and report on their food waste generation. For a deeper dive, check out this blog.
To check out the Model and each of the accompanying resources, follow these links:
Adopting a compost procurement policy can benefit local suppliers, help develop new compost processing businesses, and reduce irrigation and fertilizer costs. The NRDC/ELI Model Compost Procurement Policy is intended to require municipalities to purchase finished compost products when appropriate for use in public projects such as landscaping, construction, and stormwater management—provided it is not cost-prohibitive to acquire. For a deeper dive, check out this blog.
To explore the Model and each accompanying resource, follow the links below: