EQUITY is achieved when communities take responsibility for their own and for future generations. Accepting responsibility is the second major pillar of the ARC of community (Authority, Responsibility, and Capacity). Without authority we cannot become responsible for ourselves. Without responsibility, authority will indeed be exercised in shortsighted and often intolerant ways.

Are communities inherently intolerant, narrowminded, selfish and shortsighted? History is replete with examples that bolster this view. Yet communities have also been the locus of mutual aid networks, and in many cases, community level production systems are the most environmentally responsible.

This section of the web site identifies rules that encourage communities to accept responsibility towards their own less fortunate members and less fortunate members in other communities. The rules deal primarily with the issue of equity: providing livable wages, health care and education to all citizens. (Rules related to responsibility for future generations can be found in the Environment Sector.)

Featured NEW RULES

• Carbon Caps With Universal Dividends
  Many proposals addressing climate change advocate for a cap on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions or carbon content of fuels.  Returning money from future carbon allowance auctions as a per capita dividend creates a carbon cap policy that is ethical, equitable, and conducive to being politically successful.
• New York City Health Care Security Act
  Enacted in August 2005, the New York City Health Care Security Act requires any grocery store with 35 or more employees or any retailer larger than 10,000 square feet to contribute $2.50 to $3.00 towards health care for each hour an employee works. More...
• Medical Malpractice Insurance
  Eight of the ten states with the lowest medical malpractice insurance rates have an approval process for premium increases. More...
• Living Wage
  A campaign to raise the minimum wage to a "living wage" has been waged in cities around the country with great success. Over 100 cities and counties have passed a living wage law of some sort. Generally, these laws require that businesses that have contracts with the city provide a specified wage and benefits package that is higher than the federal minimum (one city, Santa Fe, New Mexico, has gone further, adopting a minimum wage for all businesses with more than 25 employees). More...
• State Single-Payer Universal Health Care Efforts
  Citizen-led efforts to institute state-level universal health care programs have cropped up across the country in recent years. Many focus on the initiative process, where a single-payer universal health care plan is put on a referendum ballot. We highlight some of the interesting efforts in this area. More...
• Equity in School Funding
  Since 1971, all but six states have been sued over educational equity, and nineteen of these states have been ordered to restructure their financing systems. In this section we highlight model state policies that ensure schools in poor districts have access to financial resources at least equal to their more fortunate counterparts. More...
• Universal Access to Preschool Education - Illinois
  In May 2006, Illinois' Governor signed the first law in the nation that aims to provide the opportunity for universal access to pre-kindergarten education for all 3 and 4-year olds as part of a "Preschool for All" initiative. More...