Santa Fe Enacts Green Home Building Regulations
Effective July 1, Santa Fe, N.M., will mandate green building codes for all new single-family homes. (EcoHome)

Lowered Insurance Premiums Available for Green Homes
Insurers have begun to offer lower premiums on homeowner and property insurance for green home owners. (The Wall Street Journal)

Green Jobs at Heart of Obama’s Earth Day Message
The Obama administration has launched an effort to sell the American public and key lawmakers on green jobs as the solution for the country’s environmental and economic woes. (The New York Times Online)

Texas Senate Approves Measure to Create Solar Incentive Program
Legislation would create a $100 million-a-year state program to encourage use of solar energy and require home builders in new subdivisions to offer solar energy to home buyers. (The Dallas Morning News)

NY Proposal Would Require Retrofitting of Older Buildings
New York City officials have proposed initiatives aimed at reducing energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions by requiring owners of older buildings to upgrade everything from boilers to light bulbs. (The New York Times)

USGBC Issues Earth Day Challenge
Email from USGBC’s Rick Fedrizzi issues reminder to green existing buildings. (Jetson Green)

The Selling of Earth Day 2009: The Good, Bad, and Ugly
What started as an environmental call to action nearly 40 years ago has grown into a blitzkrieg of an occasion that businesses use externally as a platform, marketing opportunity, and engagement tool to define and accentuate their green credentials. (GreenBiz)

Lighting Designer Defends Incandescents
Retired lighting designer Howard Brandston accuses “energy zealots” of using faulty science to determine the efficiency of light bulbs, and he says that simplistic lumens-per-watt comparisons obscure questions of how well different bulbs light up a room. (The New York Times)