Nob Hill Neighbors -- Albuquerque's future just got a lot greener.

Last night our City Council unanimously passed a new solar/renewables energy standard for the City of Albuquerque!

Councilor Benton and I introduced this bill last spring knowing we'd face an uphill battle to win over skeptics who thought it wasn't necessary or too expensive.

But thanks to you - and Council staff, industry experts, city solar vendor CST solar and our financial analysts - we were able to present real data to the Council and the public that showed that not only is moving to solar the environmentally responsible thing to do, but it also saves taxpayers millions of dollars over our current PNM bills.

It's that type of process, a debate based on data and good policy, we'd all like to see more of in politics today.

A special thanks to Environment New Mexico, 350.org and the countless residents who emailed and called councilors encouraging them to conduct the study and pass this bill.

So, what's next?  This resolution sets the standard and now we have to implement the plan.  We'll begin the process of prioritizing projects so that we can get started in the city's next budget year.  We'll need your help then, too, so don't go too far.

Until then, thanks for continuing to call, email and Facebook to show support!

-Pat