Policy wonk alert: How states are encouraging green architecture
Some people love politics and public policy. Others would rather have their fingernails removed by a gang of sadistic monkeys. Most of the time, I'm the first camp. That's why I subscribe to a weekly e-mail from Stateline, an online, nonpartisan news service that focuses on news from Lansing, St. Paul, Sacramento, Austin and the other 46 state capitals. (Lansing is the capital of Michigan, right?) Anyway, today's e-mail included a piece called States 'green-building' laws lead by example. In the story, Karen Nitkin reports that Nevada, New Mexico, Illinois and Hawaii are offering various green incentives to encourage architects and builders to do the right thing.

"Nevada and New Mexico, have established tax incentives for private developers to meet LEED standards," writes Nitkin. "Illinois in August became the first state to offer financial incentives to LEED-compliant neighborhood development, providing as much as 1.5 percent of total development costs from the state's Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity for as many as three neighborhoods a year. Hawaii’s incentive focuses on building permits: The state offers quicker processing time for construction that achieves LEED Silver standard."

And Minnesota? Not mentioned.