Caucus: Emissions reduction is linchpin of climate legislation

St. JOHNSBURY — The Legislature’s inaction on climate action bills in the first half of the biennium may be reversed in the next session. Key House lawmakers and climate caucus members plan to move sweeping climate legislation forward in January. 

The Vermont Climate Solutions Caucus explained its plans at a forum Wednesday night in St. Johnsbury. (Additional forums are listed at the end of this article.)

Rep. Sarah Copeland-Hanzas, D-Bradford, said the caucus was frustrated by a lack of progress last session despite a growing desire among Vermonters to wean the state off of fossil fuels. They’re hoping the pre-session “public engagement campaign” will allow for the broader buy-in needed to pass more ambitious climate bills next year. 

A linchpin of their platform is mandating the state’s emissions reductions goals, as some other New England states have done. 

The bill, known as the “Global Warming Solutions Act,” would require state agencies to adopt rules to reduce emissions.

Although Vermont has aggressive greenhouse gas emissions goals on the books, emissions have increased in recent years. The state’s most recent data from 2015 show emissions are 16% higher than in 1990. The state set goals to lower emissions 50% by that date.

“We have had pollution reduction goals in aspirational statutes for some time … but the fact of the matter is we haven’t done a whole lot to bend the curve and get our emissions going in the right direction,” said Copeland- Hanzas. 

Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts and New York have enacted similar laws. 

Copeland-Hanzas said the details of the bill are still in flux, and the House Energy and Technology Committee has worked on a similar proposal. 

Rep. Tim Briglin, D-Thetford, who chairs the Energy Committee, said modeling Vermont legislation after laws in New York and Maine could make the most sense for Vermont. Both states opted for approaches that bring different parts of government together to come up with a “blueprint” to reduce emissions, he said. In contrast, Massachusetts required the state’s Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs to develop a emissions reduction plan.

Because Vermont has not met emissions reductions goals, Briglin said his committee would look to modify the state’s targets as part of the Global Warming Solutions Act discussions. 

 “I’m hopeful to have a bill introduced very early in the session … that is what my committee is going to be chewing on and, without question, those targets are going to be an important thing,” he said. 

Most of Vermont’s emissions come from transportation and heating; reducing emissions from those sectors has dominated recent climate policy discussions. Last December, Gov. Phil Scott’s administration announced that Vermont would take part in developing a regional cap and invest program, known as the Transportation Climate Initiative, for onroad gasoline and diesel. A similar effort called the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative has helped reduce emissions from electric utilities and provided Vermont with funding for energy efficiency. 

TCI released a draft framework last month and will unveil the policy proposal in December. States will then have until spring to decide whether to join in. 

Copeland-Hanzas said the caucus supports Vermont joining the Transportation Climate Initiative as a means to reduce vehicle emissions. 

“We want to make sure that this collaboration happens regionally because we know that Vermont is not an island, our borders our porous,” she said. 

Rep. Scott Campbell, D-St. Johnsbury, said the caucus wants to improve energy efficiency training and outreach to builders for retrofits and new construction. While Vermont has had building energy standards on the books for decades, residential builders are sometimes not aware of the latest specifications, Campbell said.

“You would think that people would understand the basic concepts of building science and energy performance in buildings,” he said, “But the knowledge base in the construction industry isn’t that high.”

Last session, lawmakers worked on legislation for registering contractors — in part to address construction fraud. Campbell said a registry would also allow the state to conduct better outreach about building energy efficiency. 

Another priority for the next session is supporting the transition to electrification of heating and transportation through in-state renewable generation. Copeland-Hanzas cited two pieces of legislation that would bolster those efforts: A measure that would increase the amount of net metered solar power capacity available for schools and the consolidation of electric vehicle incentives.  

While many meeting attendees called for bolder action on climate initiatives, they also asked lawmakers to come up with creative, cost-effective ways to cut emissions that are tailored to Vermont’s rural economy. 

Jack Friedman of Danville, former manager of Washington Electric Co-op’s power plant, said that while he supports climate action, electric vehicle technology and infrastructure still are not viable options for many Vermonters, especially with electric grid constraints.

“I would like to hear what’s doable now without driving more people out of the state,” he said. “What makes sense to me is, we have a huge carbon sink in our forests. Why don’t we invest in that?” 

Copeland-Hanzas and Campbell agreed that working with farmers and forest landowners was logical for Vermont. A legislative study committee is currently looking into a proposal to pay farmers and others for carbon sequestration and other so-called “ecosystem services.”  

A couple attendees called on lawmakers to ensure that promoting in-state renewables was done in a way that is accessible to all Vermonters and does not shift costs to low-income ratepayers.

Keith Wooster, of Kirby, called for the state to take an inventory of housing stock, referring to improving building efficiency as a “Vermont solution” that would build off long-standing electric efficiency programs. 

Other meeting attendees suggested that the state should look at passive housing — a form of building design that meets rigorous energy efficiency standards — to save Vermonters money on heating and cooling. 

“That can be done — it’s not experimental science, it’s not rocket science,” said Enrique Bueno, of Middlesex, referencing a recent affordable housing project in Brewer, Maine, designed to meet passive house standards in a cold climate. 

John Raser, of St. Johnsbury, expressed frustration that land use planning in Vermont sometimes eschews walkability, citing examples of developments built outside downtowns and roads in urban areas built without sidewalks. Although many Vermonters can barely afford a car, let alone a pricier electric vehicle, some are forced to drive because of these planning decisions, he said.

“You don’t need to put money into it, just say as a state ‘we’re not going to build on the outskirts anymore,” said Raser. “We’re not going to put our schools where kids can’t walk to them.”

Some meeting attendees raised concerns that climate proposals like the Transportation Climate Initiative would inevitably lead to a carbon tax in Vermont. JT Dodge, of Newbury and head of the grassroots group “No Carbon Tax Vermont” asked Copeland-Hanzas multiple times whether the caucus supported mandatory emissions reductions “regardless” of economic impacts. 

“I don’t think that anybody who’s elected to the Legislature supports doing anything regardless of the cost,” said Copeland-Hanzas. “I think we’re all about having good conversation and making sure that it’s working for our neighbors, making sure it’s working for the businesses that we own, working for our communities.”

“But otherwise mostly mandatory?” asked Dodge.

“Voluntary hasn’t gotten us anywhere,” she responded. 

The caucus will be holding more forums: 

• Vergennes, Nov. 22 from 6-8 p.m. in the Vergennes Public Library
• Upper Valley, Nov. 25 TBD
• Bristol, Dec. 2, 6:30-8 p.m., Bristol Firehouse
• Burlington, Dec. 3, 6:30-8:30 p.m., Burlington Electric Department
• South Burlington, Dec. 9, 6:30-8 p.m., Fred Tuttle Middle School
• Newbury, Dec. 10, 6:30-8:30 p.m., West Newbury Hall

Correction: Rep. Scott Campbell was misidentified in a photo in an earlier version of this story. That photo has been replaced.

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