Climate Change

HB 1091

Washington

HB 1091 is an act relating to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by reducing the carbon intensity of transportation fuel. It is the intent of the legislature to support the deployment of clean transportation fuel technologies through a carefully designed program that reduces the carbon intensity of fuel used in Washington. The bill calls for a reduction of the greenhouse gas emissions attributable to each unit of the fuels to 10 percent below 2017 levels by 2028 and 20 percent below 2017 levels by 2035. The program would begin no later than January 1, 2023. By December 31, 2031, the department must adopt updated rules that reduce the greenhouse gas emissions attributable to each unit of transportation fuels applicable to each year through 2050. The department must adopt rules that set the greenhouse gas emissions attributable to each unit of transportation fuel in the year 2050 so that total emissions from transportation sources in 2050 are consistent with the state achieving the emissions limits established in RCW 70A.45.020.

SB 96

Colorado

This bill requires the Air Quality Control Commission in the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) to promulgate rules by June 1, 2020, requiring greenhouse gas-emitting entities to monitor and publicly report their emissions. The rules must also direct the Air Quality Control Division in CDPHE to update the statewide inventory of greenhouse gas emissions by sector, no less than every two years. The inventory must include a forecast of Colorado's greenhouse gas emissions for 2025, and every five years through 2045, and a recalculation of Colorado's 2005 greenhouse gas emissions to serve as a baseline for measuring progress against greenhouse gas emission reduction goals. By July 1, 2020, the board is required to publish a notice of proposed rule-making that proposes rules to implement measures that will cost-effectively allow the state to meet its greenhouse gas emission reduction goals. The division is required to publicly release the inventory on its website and maintain the data at least through 2030.

SB 1044

Oregon

SB 1044 helps accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles. This policy mandates 9 out of 10 new car sales be electric by 2035, along with half the vehicles registered in the state. The bill requires the Oregon Department of Energy to develop recommend strategies to the legislature to spur EV adoption, if it determines the state is not on track to meet its goals. SB 1044 would allow schools to use an existing funding source — a portion of the public purpose charge on utility bills dedicated to schools — to purchase electric buses and charging stations. The legislation also requires all light-duty vehicles owned or leased by the state of Oregon be EVs by 2029.

A839

New Jersey

In response to a proposal for a National Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program that would open up US coastlines to offshore drilling, New Jersey passed Assembly Bill 839 to formally ban offshore drilling along its coastline. This bill, which was signed in the spring of 2018, prohibits the leasing of tidal or submerged lands in state waters 3-miles off of the coastline for oil/natural gas exploration, development, or production. The basis of this ban lies in the importance of New Jersey’s coastal tourism, fisheries, and recreation to its state economy and the threat of offshore drilling poses to the health of its coastline.

HB 1986

Hawaii

This bill directs Hawaii's government agencies to establish a carbon offset program and join together with California and the other states' carbon markets to begin implementation on that front.

HB 2182

Hawaii

HB 2182 bill does two important things. First, it updates Hawaii's Climate Mitigation and Adaptation Initiative to legally establish a mitigation goal of statewide carbon neutrality as soon as possible, but no later than 2045, and directs all state agencies and departments to plan for this and incorporate into their decision-making.This ties together Hawaii's existing efforts toward a 100% RPS by 2045 in the electricity sector, the existing statewide commitment to zero emissions ground transportation by 2045, and expands carbon sequestration to fill the remaining gaps and zero out carbon emissions to create the nation's first truly clean economy. Secondly, it formally establishes a greenhouse gas sequestration task force to double down on carbon sequestration efforts and move forward.

AB 398

CA

Extends the Air Resources Board's (ARB) cap and trade authority through 2030. Requires ARB to establish a price ceiling on greenhouse gas (GHG) emission allowances in consideration of specified factors, adds several new conditions governing the management and allocation of allowances, reduces limits on compliance offsets, requires ARB to designate the cap and trade regulation as the GHG emission reduction rule for petroleum refineries and oil and gas production facilities, prohibits an air district from adopting or implementing an emission reduction rule for carbon dioxide from stationary sources that are also subject to the cap and trade regulation, and make other related changes. Suspends the State Responsibility Area (SRA) fire prevention fee from July 1, 2017 to January 1, 2031, and sunsets the SRA fee thereafter. Extends and expands the existing manufacturer's partial sales and use tax exemption from July 1, 2022 to July 1, 2030.

SB 1425

California

Building on California's 2008 Climate Action Registry, Senator Pavley's Bill No. 1425 requires that the California EPA develop and implement a registry for greenhouse gas emissions resulting from water-based energy use, referred to as the water-energy nexus. To ensure that this registry uses the best available data to measure energy output, the bill authorizes CalEPA to work with a nonprofit organization to develop science-backed emissions baselines, encourage efficiency and greenhouse gas reduction measures, and assist participating businesses in tracking their emissions. All businesses in the state are eligible to participate on a voluntary basis.

SB 323

MD

Repealing the termination date for a provision of law requiring the State to reduce statewide greenhouse gas emissions by 25% from 2006 levels by 2020; requiring the State to reduce statewide greenhouse gas emissions by 40% from 2006 levels by 2030; requiring the Department of the Environment to submit specified plans to the Governor and the General Assembly on or before specified dates; requiring the Maryland Commission on Climate Change to oversee a study of the economic impact of requiring specified reductions from the manufacturing sector.

AB 1482

CA

This bill requires the Resources Agency, by July 1, 2017, and every 3 years thereafter, to update the state's climate adaptation strategy, as provided. The bill would require the Agency, by January 1, 2017, and every 3 years thereafter, to release a draft climate adaptation strategy, as provided. The bill would require state agencies to maximize specified objectives, including, among others, promoting the use of the climate adaptation strategy to inform planning decisions and ensure that state investments consider climate change impacts, as well as promote the use of natural systems and natural infrastructure, as defined, when developing physical infrastructure to address adaptation.

AB 692

CA

This bill, commencing January 1, 2017, requires, except as provided, at least 3% of the aggregate amount of bulk transportation fuel purchased by the state government to be procured from very low carbon transportation fuel sources. The bill would require, except as provided, the percentage to be increased by 1% each year thereafter until January 1, 2024. The bill requires the Department of General Services to coordinate with state agencies that are buyers of transportation fuel and submit an annual progress report to the Legislature. The bill would define very low carbon transportation fuel for these purposes.

SB 350

CA

This bill requires that the amount of electricity generated and sold to retail customers per year from eligible renewable energy resources be increased to 50% by December 31, 2030, as provided. The bill makes other revisions to the RPS Program and to certain other requirements on public utilities and publicly owned electric utilities.

SO 6617B

NY

Relates to future climate risk and/or sea level rise projections and other weather-related data. The purpose of the bill is to ensure that certain state monies, facility-siting regulations and permits include consideration of the effects of climate risk and extreme-weather events.

HF 773

MN

Contains several provisions designed to promote the generation of solar electricity in Minnesota. It requires utilities to pay solar generators a “value of solar” price calculated by the Department of Commerce; establishes a solar energy standard that requires a certain proportion of utility retail electric sales to be generated by solar energy by certain target dates; and authorizes the commissioner of commerce to calculate a solar energy production incentive designed to support a level of development of solar energy that will meet the solar energy standard. The bill also requires the production of several studies on solar energy, thermal as well as electric, and the use of on-site energy storage systems.

HB 5510

CT

To prepare electric distribution companies, municipalities, public and private merchants and electrical contractors for the presence and operation of electric, zero-emission and fuel cell vehicles in the state, to make changes regarding parking of hydrogen fuel vehicles under grade level and to make changes regarding labeling of vehicles that carry pressurized gas as fuel.

SB 1243

CT

This bill creates the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) by merging the departments of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Public Utility Control (DPUC). In addition to the duties and powers inherited from those departments, the bill gives DEEP new energy-related planning and oversight responsibilities and transfers various energy-related responsibilities and powers from the Office of Policy and Management (OPM) to it.

SB X 1-2

CA

Increases California's Renewables Portfolio Standard goal from 20 percent by 2010 to 33 percent by 2020 and revises specified provisions of the existing RPS statutes.

AB 920

CA

This bill expands the current net-metering programs for wind and solar to allow net-metered customers to sell any excess electricity they produce over the course of a year to their electric utility at a rate set either by the Public Utilities Commission or by the publicly-owned utility. The rate shall be set to provide the customer-generator "just and reasonable" compensation for the surplus energy sales, while leaving other ratepayers unaffected. The utility retains ownership of the renewable energy credits (RECs) associated with any net surplus electricity it must purchase, while the customer will retain the REC associated with any electricity generated and consumed by the customer.

AB 32

CA

Specifies that the California Air Resources Board adopt by 2020 a statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit that equals the 1990 level. Authorizes the board to monitor and implement regulations to reduce emissions of gases that cause global warming.

AB 2021

CA

This bill requires the Energy Commission, on or before November 1, 2007, and every 3 years thereafter, in consultation with the commission and local publicly owned electric utilities, in a public process that allows input from other stakeholders, to develop a statewide estimate of all potentially achievable cost-effective electricity and natural gas efficiency savings and establish statewide annual targets for energy efficiency savings and demand reduction over 10 years.

SB 1

CA

This bill requires beginning January 1, 2011, a seller of production homes, as defined, to offer the option of a solar energy system, as defined, to all customers negotiating to purchase a new production home constructed on land meeting certain criteria and to disclose certain information.related to this provision. This bill would require the PUC, in implementing the California Solar Initiative, to authorize the award of monetary incentives for up to the first megawatt of alternating current generated by an eligible solar energy system.

AB 1007

CA

This bill requires, not later than June 30, 2007, the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission, in partnership with the state board, and in consultation with specified state agencies, to develop and adopt a state plan to increase the use of alternative fuels.

AB 1660

CA

Enacts the California Energy-Efficient Vehicle Group Purchase Program to encourage state and local government agencies to buy energy-efficient motor vehicles through a group-purchasing program that uses the purchasing leverage of state and local agencies to lower the purchase price.

SB 1037

CA

This bill would require the commission, in consultation with the Energy Commission, to identify all potentially achievable cost-effective electricity efficiency savings and to establish efficiency targets for an electrical corporation to achieve pursuant to its procurement plan. The bill would require that an electrical corporation's procurement plan include a showing that the electrical corporation will first meet its unmet resource needs through all available energy efficiency and demand reduction resources that are cost effective, reliable, and feasible.

AB 1493

CA

This bill would require the state board to develop and adopt, by January 1, 2005, regulations that achieve the maximum feasible reduction of greenhouse gases emitted by passenger vehicles and light-duty trucks and any other vehicles determined by the state board to be vehicles whose primary use is noncommercial personal transportation in the state.

SB 1771

CA

This bill establishes the California Climate Action Registry to establish, among other things, emissions baselines against which any future federal greenhouse gas emission reduction requirements may be applied, to encourage voluntary actions to increase energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and to record voluntary greenhouse gas emissions made after 1990.