FCWPP Environmental Stewardship – HB 1314, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, is currently stuck in the House.

HB 1314, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, is currently stuck in the House Appropriations Committee. We urge Friends to act now to contact your House members to express support for moving this bill to the floor and including the funds it would provide in the budget. (Please see the Attachments for a script or more talking points to use when speaking with, or emailing, your legislator.) In addition to contacting the people representing you in the House of Representatives, Friends can also write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper to inform neighbors in other legislative districts of the costs of carbon pollution and ocean acidification in Washington. It is important to make this issue a public discussion at this time. Background: HB 1314, establishes a “cap and trade” market based greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions program to be implemented by the Department of Ecology (DOE) . The GHG emissions program reduces emissions to support existing statutory limits for 2020, 2035 and 2050 by requiring all facilities, fuel suppliers and fuel importers, whose annual  GHG emissions exceed 25,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, obtain emissions allowances beginning July 1, 2016. This is the “cap” part established by legislation in 2008 which impacts only about 130 entities. DOE issues allowances annually and the allowances can be traded regionally, nationally and internationally. An Economic Justice and Environmental Equity  Advisory Committee is also established to periodically evaluate the socioeconomic effects of the state’s carbon emission reduction policies. Revenue generated by DOE auction of GHG allowances goes into a carbon pollution reduction account and is used for transportation projects, education, housing assistance programs, a sales tax rebate and earned income tax credit for persons with lower incomes, a business and occupation tax credit to certain energy intensive industries, and rural economic assistance programs. (for more information read HB 1314 at http://app.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/summary.aspx?bill=1314&year=2015 and the report to the Governor at http://www.governor.wa.gov/sites/default/files/documents/CERT_Final_Report.pdf) Thank you, FCWPP Environmental Stewardship and Peace Working Group How to send an email:

1. If you know your legislators’ names, send an email addressed to: (Example: Rep. Frank Chopp’s address is ). You can also leave a phone message for your legislators using the Legislative Hotline at 1-800-562-6000 (staff will identify your legislative district and find your legislators’ names).
2. If you need help finding your legislative district, legislators’ names or email addresses, click EMAIL HELP

Attachments: HB 1314.Additional Background (124 KB PDF) HB 1315.Talking Points (345 KB PDF)