Hello, CarbonWA friends:

We Support I-1631! 

After another round of legislative inaction, a ballot initiative is moving forward to put a price on carbon. We’ve taken a close look at the policy, collected feedback from our supporters, and held a robust internal discussion about the initiative. As a result, we are moving forward in support of I-1631. You can see our full statement below. But, before you make up your own mind, we’d encourage you to review our recent in-depth analysis of the initiative (including a comparison matrix, exploration of wonky details, and a carbon reduction ranking).

While the 1631 policy differs in some ways from the approaches we’ve seen in recent years, we also see it as an outgrowth of the grassroots energy that put the first carbon tax in the nation on the ballot and has since led to a surge of serious legislative proposals. I-1631 also has the extra boost of a very favorable ballot title ruling from the Attorney General’s office (something the I-732 effort struggled with), and a recent upholding of the title against legal challenges from the Association of Washington Business and a conservative activist (who we don’t know much about except that his website logo is of sasquatch toppling the Olympia capitol). Read on for the reasoning behind our support of I-1631. (more…)

Hello, CarbonWA friends: There’s a new initiative in town — which we’ve broken down for you — and two fantastic climate conferences are coming up in April! Don’t fret if this is our last newsletter for a few weeks. Some of our key leaders are heading out on vacation and the next big climate move will be seeing if I-1631 goes forward to the ballot.

Carbon pricing policy analysis (including I-1631!) 

While the carbon tax bill that we supported in the legislature, SB 6203, passed out of two committees in the Senate, stalled, and ultimately failed to pass this year, the carbon pricing debate has never been more alive. Initiative 1631, which would create a carbon fee, has been filed, and the core sponsors (including The Nature Conservancy, Alliance for Jobs and Clean Energy, and some of Washington’s tribal nations) are preparing to move forward. If you want to get involved with the initiative, check out this page. We’ve put together an in-depth analysis of the initiative and how it compares to the major previous proposals we’ve seen, including SB 6203 and I-732. Our analysis blog includes a comparison matrix, exploration of wonky details, a carbon reduction ranking — and we even included pictures and graphs! So please check out our blog. You can also download PDFs of the blog post, the policy matrix, and the price trajectory chart.

We are pleased that the sponsors of I-1631 have put a plan on the table, but we will wait to see it move forward with signature gathering before commenting further. The measure has until early July to get the signatures to qualify. Take a look at the analysis and then let us know what you think about the initiative. Email Kyle@carbonwa.org to send us your input!  (more…)

Statement from Kyle Murphy, Executive Director, Carbon Washington

After a decade of inaction on climate change, our elected leaders have a duty and obligation to enact public policy to reduce carbon. It is clear that people in Washington want action. The legislature’s continued failure to do so is disturbing.

SB 6203 made history as the first carbon tax in the country to be voted out of two legislative committees, and by coming within a single vote or two in the Senate. The support from environmental, tribal, and business interests was groundbreaking and builds on considerable progress in Washington to elevate a conversation about climate change and a price on carbon. While I-732, the nation’s first carbon tax initiative put to Washington voters in 2016 didn’t pass at the polls, it was the basis for four carbon pricing bills introduced in the 2017 legislature, and created an opportunity for the legislature to seriously consider SB 6203 in the 2018 session.

Climate action in Washington is coming. Opponents of this bill achieved little beyond a temporary delay in our inevitable trajectory toward a clean energy future. Carbon Washington will now focus its efforts on putting a price on carbon this year at the ballot or next year in the legislature.

Future generations are counting on us, and we will continue to mobilize citizens, provide leadership, and advocate for effective, equitable, economically sound, evidence-based, and politically feasible policies to address climate change.