A nine-state coalition that includes Vermont will develop a plan within a year to combat greenhouse gas emissions caused by cars and other transportation.
Vermont officials said the coalition was not likely to propose a carbon tax, which Gov. Phil Scott has vigorously opposed. More likely, they said the coalition will outline a cap-and-trade program to make each state’s transportation system more efficient.
The Vermont Public Interest Research Group, which has been highly critical of Scott’s environmental policies, gave cautious praise. Its executive director said he was not “ready to pop any corks yet.”
The interstate coalition, called the Transportation and Climate Initiative, said it would develop a cap-and-invest program “or other pricing mechanism” to slow the growth of emissions from transportation, the largest source of greenhouse gases among members, which includes nine Northeastern and mid-Atlantic states and District of Columbia.
Transportation, particularly automobiles, makes up about 40 percent of the carbon emissions in the region. A cap-and-trade program, as it suggests, caps the amount of greenhouse gas emissions that are allowable in particular industries or across the economy, and then creates a carbon market that allows entities to trade pollution allowances, benefiting those who cut pollution faster and imposing an increasing financial burden on heavy polluters.
Though the language was made flexible, Vermont’s representative on the coalition, Peter Walke, said a carbon tax was an unlikely outcome. He said the group was leaning toward a program to control transportation emissions similar to the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a cap-and-trade program on emissions from fossil-fuel fired electric power plants.
The governor’s spokesperson, Rebecca Kelley, made clear Scott would not embrace any proposal from the group involving a carbon tax.
“No, the Governor’s position on a carbon tax has not changed. Participating in this initiative gives us a seat at the table so we can help shape a regional market approach, that can help invest in the green technology and transportation economy, in collaboration with other states,” Kelley said in an email.
“This is in stark contrast to a carbon tax, which would be a regressive approach that will make the region less affordable and negatively impact jobs,” she added.
Walke, who is also Vermont’s deputy natural resources secretary, said he didn’t believe the other states wanted a carbon tax either.
In a statement, the coalition noted the most recent UN report found “ambitious reductions” in carbon emissions are needed to reduce climate change. After a year of meetings throughout the region, a “diverse group” of stakeholders in the region have expressed “strong interest in the potential for establishing a market-based policy to reduce carbon pollution from the transportation sector,” the coalition said.
Market-based policies can include a cap-and-trade program or a tax on carbon, according to the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions.
“When you are trying to build a coalition of partners, sometimes there needs to be flexibility in the language,” said Walke.
After the proposal is made next year, each state and DC will have the chance to adopt it or opt out. The hope is enough jurisdictions will participate to create a critical mass.
The agreement was endorsed by Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and the District of Columbia.
“This proposed program, when combined with existing programs and complementary policies, will be designed to achieve substantial reductions in transportation sector emissions and provide net economic and social benefits for participating states,” the TCI statement said.
Paul Burns, executive director of the Vermont Public Interest Research Group, said the proposal “appears to be a significant step toward real climate action.”
“It’s great to see Vermont among those states participating, given the Scott administration’s previous refusal to consider carbon pricing as an efficient tool to reduce climate pollution.” Burns said. “But I have to say, we’re not ready to pop any corks yet.”
Scott’s opposition to a carbon tax is so strong he told a Vermont climate commission he appointed to not even study a carbon tax, even though it was one of the five recommendations the commission suggested. Scott believes a carbon tax would only make sense on a federal level.
The work of TCI is facilitated by the Georgetown Climate Center. Walke said accomplishing the work in a year would be difficult.
“It’s a big lift but it’s one that’s needed,” he said.
He said the Legislature and the public would decide how any funds were spent on transportation improvements. Scott has been a proponent of increasing the number of electric vehicles.
