We are about half-way into the 2020 Washington State legislative session and are dealing with the legislative clearing 1200 new bills in addition to bills that did not pass last year being forced through the session for yet another try having been thwarted last session. The most important way to back up the minority fighting for you and your rights in Olympia is to call legislators and thank them, or if your legislator has shown a tendency to vote in favor of bills you disagree with, be sure to call, and email to show your disapproval. 800 562 6000
It is CAPR’s mission and our policy to be a non-partisan organization, purposefully being friendly with and working with all citizens. However, that does not preclude us from noticing when bills intended to regulate and infringe on property owner’s lives, liberties, and properties, are partisan in nature and sponsorship. The below Climate Change bills are sponsored by Democrat State Legislators on a strictly partisan basis.
This list of bills, theoretically based on an urgency to act on “Climate Change” somehow seem to have the actual effect of regulating, taxing, or increasing your costs as an end user of energy.
1110 / 5412 Reducing the greenhouse gas emissions associated with transportation fuels. Hard fought last session, the bill sponsors are back to push it again, seemingly with more success. This bill will make fuels less efficient and more harmful to vehicles, making upkeep more costly and shortening the life of machinery and vehicles. https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=1110&Year=2019&Initiative=false
2310 / 6399 Reducing emissions from vehicles associated with on-demand transportation services. Limiting employment opportunity and convenience in the name of “Climate Change”. https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=2310&Initiative=false&Year=2019
2311 / 6272 Amending state greenhouse gas emission limits for consistency with the most recent assessment of climate change science. Net zero emissions in 30 years and laying the ground for sequestration marketing. https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=2311&Initiative=false&Year=2019
2427 / 6453 Tackling climate change as a goal of the growth management act. Adding climate change to GMA planning goals and in transportation planning. https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=2427&Initiative=false&Year=2019
2829 Declaring a climate emergency. Authorizes the Governor to declare an energy emergency for purposes of limiting greenhouse gas emissions and building resiliency to the effects of climate change. This bill eliminates the legislature from the checks and balances system of representative governance, legislative, executive, judicial. Essentailly the legislature is asserting it has the ability to relinquish your representation and authority to the governor. https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=2829&Initiative=false&Year=2019
2892 Authorizing the department of ecology to regulate greenhouse gas emissions associated with persons who produce or distribute fossil fuel products that emit greenhouse gases in Washington.
The Democrat bill sponsors of 2892 https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=2892&Year=2019&Initiative=false somehow imagine the Department of Ecology does not already have enough legislative authority delegated to it, and with this bill would authorize the Ecology to regulate both direct and "indirect" emissions.
This bill authorizes Ecology to regulate both direct and “indirect” emissions and without a specific definition of indirect emissions, there is no limitation to the authority given. This means indirect emissions could range from any fossil fuel used for any reason, emissions from your wood stove, or even emissions from livestock and agricultural activities. The bill authorizes carbon fees and credits, but specifies the intent is not to have credits sold or traded. However, Representative Doglio in her passionate defense of this bill stated the intent of the bill is to create and lead to an eventual carbon credit market which she termed a “carbon pricing scheme” and in the same testimony referred to the planned end product of a carbon cap and pricing market law.
Republican members of the state house Committee on Environment & Energy desperately fought the democrat majority in committee with 11 amendments and persuasive arguments, as can be seen here: https://www.tvw.org/watch/?eventID=2020021088 at minute 8:48, to soften the blow in loss of jobs and productivity, especially in rural and frankly any counties outside of King County of this bill, but all were voted down and so the bill was passed by the Democrat majority and presumably sent to the rules committee for an impending vote on the house floor.
This bill does not have a companion in the Senate, but in an all too common legislative method has been introduced in the form of a furtively produced stand alone bill that is much the same. That bill is 6628, https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=6628&Year=2019&Initiative=False sponsored by Democrat Senators Carlyle, Liias, Kuderer, Hunt, Stanford, Salomon, and Wellman in a partisan bid to please Governor Inslee with this bill. The bill has also undergone the committee process and will head for a vote on the Senate floor where, if passed, will be later “reconciled” with the house bill.
The only thing standing between you and this form of regulation is you, make your voice heard. 800 562 6000, Here are the links to the House and Senate Committee members who have produced these bills: http://leg.wa.gov/House/Committees/ENVI/Pages/MembersStaff.aspx and http://leg.wa.gov/Senate/Committees/ENET/Pages/MembersStaff.aspx
February 7, 2020