Bills to Rejoin RGGI; Dedicate Funds Released from Committee

Today the Senate Environment and Energy Committee has released the following bills pertaining to the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and how to spend the money collected from it.

RGGI Participation S611 (Smith) requires State’s full participation in Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. This includes adopting measures set by other RGGI participating states. RGGI is a ten-state regional compact to reduce climate change, air pollution and fund clean energy projects. Governor Christie pulled us out of RGGI in August of 2015. Exiting the program has caused New Jersey to lose jobs, increase pollution, and fail to combat climate change. This bill would also prevent future Governors from removing us from RGGI without Legislative consent, like Governor Christie did. Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club, released the following statement:

“People in NJ demand action on climate change and going back into RGGI is an important step. Christie pulled us out of RGGI because of his national political ambitions and now we need this Legislature to put us back in. Christie was the only Governor to pull their state out of RGGI and we need to correct that action with this legislation. Exiting the program has caused New Jersey to lose jobs, increase pollution, and fail to combat climate change. The Governor exceeded legislative intent by pulling out of RGGI without the input of the public or the Legislature. RGGI worked to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by almost 20 million tons and created 1,800 green jobs in the state. In a state that was devastated by Sandy and climate impacts, pulling out of RGGI was not only wrong, but dangerous.

“The money collected from RGGI went out to help environmental programs, expand renewable energy, create jobs, reduce greenhouse gases, and help middle class families save money on their electric bills. While the other states were seeing the benefits of RGGI, we’ve lost them because of Christie’s actions. This bill will make it so other Governors can’t do it again. People in our state have seen the impacts of climate change firsthand and demand action. Rejoining RGGI is the first step towards a greener future and this time around, we have a Governor that will sign this legislation.

“It’s important that New Jersey is reentering RGGI so we can move forward on climate. Under this bill, New Jersey will be required to follow whatever the RGGI compact does in regards to greenhouse gas emissions. We’re happy to see updates made to this bill since the original ten years ago, but still have some concerns and suggestions for further updates. We need to have deeper reduction cap on greenhouse gasses and stricter rules for co-generation plants.

“We also need to be sure there is environmental justice language to protect communities disproportionally affected by climate change. We also believe that the per ton charge for carbon cap so that we can better capture the environmental and societal impacts of carbon. The benefits of RGGI are targeted to communities that have received a disproportionate share of pollution, especially minority and low-income communities.”

RGGI Money for EVs S612 (Smith) dedicates first $300 million from State’s participation in Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative for electric vehicle programs. New Jersey Sierra Club Director Jeff Tittel released the following statement:

“It’s critical to get electric vehicles moving forward in New Jersey and the RGGI money will be a good way to do it. Under Christie we were lagging but this can help us jumpstart EVs in New Jersey. Electric vehicles not only reduce greenhouse gas emissions from cars, but can detract from fossil fuels. If we are able to charge electric vehicles with renewable energy like solar, it is even better for the environment. We need legislation like this to help build charging stations and make EVs more accessible for everyone in the state. believe that the remaining money should go to energy efficiency.

“A fully electric vehicle uses electricity to power a battery. This means no gasoline, no dirty oil changes, and no internal combustion engine. Thanks to rebates and tax credits, decreasing prices in EV technology, and the much cheaper price of electricity vs. gasoline, the cost of owning and operating an electric vehicle is now notably lower than that of many conventional vehicles. There are currently more than 20 fully electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles available at US dealerships. GM is discussing new models and some states want to phase out gasoline-cars altogether.

“We also need to be sure that charging networks and incentives are targeted to communities that have received a disproportionate share of pollution, especially minority and low-income communities. This will help create jobs and move our state forward with an automobile that has zero emissions and decrease fossil fuels. The biggest source of air pollution and greenhouse gases in our state comes from automobiles, which is why we need to increase electric vehicles to clean our air. We need to install plug-in stations along with providing things like zip cars, ride shares, and taxis to encourage EV’s that everyone can afford.”

RGGI Money for EVs SCR40 (Smith) amends Constitution to dedicate revenues realized from State’s participation in Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative to electric vehicle, clean energy, and greenhouse gas reduction programs.

“We need this dedication because we can’t risk these funds being stolen for other issues. Christie has already stolen $1.6 billion from the Clean Energy Fund and money from various environmental settlements. New Jersey must continue to support the sale of electric vehicles, install charging stations, and commit to a more sustainable transportation future if we want to meet our goals. We are one of the best states to utilize electric vehicles since most of our energy is already carbon-free. While Trump is rolling back CAFE standards, it makes it even more important for New Jersey to be a leader in electric vehicles and the infrastructure to support them,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “If we’re going to go on the ballot to dedicate this money for EV’s, we should be dedicating all RGGI money, as well as funds from the Clean Energy Fund. We need to protect all of these monies and prevent them from being raided for other purposes.”