Washington Gov. Jay Inslee on Friday unveiled his plan to fight climate change, which he says he’d begin to implement on the first day of his presidency.
What would the plan do?
The Democrat’s vision for a decade-long mobilization to combat climate change includes having the nation’s utilities powered entirely by carbon-neutral power by 2030.
It also calls for all new smaller vehicles and buses to reach zero emissions and for new commercial and residential buildings to produce no carbon emissions by 2030. It would also close the nation’s coal fleet by 2030, while proposing support for communities and workers affected by those closures.How much would it cost?
Inslee did not offer a price tag for the plan, nor any suggestion of how he’d fund it. That’s likely to rankle fellow Democrats, many of whom have previously voiced concern, along with Republicans, that decarbonizing the economy that quickly is impossible.
Who would it help?
The plan would generate millions of new jobs for people working in clean energy sectors and building more sustainable infrastructure, according to Inslee. It would benefit residents suffering greater public health impacts from pollution or severe weather exacerbated by climate change. Inslee says his plan would also specifically seek to ensure a “just transition” for communities currently reliant on fossil fuels. A federal report last fall, echoing years of previous science, warned that economies in every region of the country would face hundreds of billions of dollars in annual disruption by midcentury because of climate change.
What have other Democrats proposed?
Inslee’s climate policy lands on the heels of former Rep. Beto O’Rourke’s, who earlier this week unveiled his vision for the government and private sector to spend $5 trillion over 10 years on clean energy infrastructure. Many of the other candidates have coalesced around ambitious climate action along the lines of the Green New Deal advanced by activists and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.).
Who opposes it?
The plan is likely to face strong opposition from Republicans, who have balked at the anticipated costs of similar proposals. Many have also resisted a national clean energy standard, arguing that such a standard doesn’t take into account the energy sources and geographies of different regions.
How would it work?
Inslee says he’d begin to implement his plan on the first day of his presidency using existing authority under the Clean Air Act, among other laws. But he also acknowledges that “other elements will require new legislation.” He’s hoping to export the model seen in multiple states, including his own, of legislation that sets goals for 100 percent clean energy use.
Emissions from the three sectors — transportation, electricity and buildings — covered by the plan account for about 70 percent of carbon emissions in the U.S. Other priorities in the plan include speeding the deployment of renewable energy on federal lands and offshore waters, favoring electric and other low-carbon alternative fuels for vehicles with tax incentives, and creating a zero-emission national building standard by 2023.
Why now?
Climate now ranks as the top issue for Democratic primary voters. And Inslee has staked his campaign around climate change, framing his candidacy around the issue and arguing that he turned Washington state into a model for the country on green energy.
The proposal also ensures that Inslee can stay at the forefront of the climate conversation in the primary, after the release of O’Rourke’s $5 trillion proposal to curb carbon emissions. O’Rourke, who generally polls ahead of Inslee, recently sent out a fundraising pitch to his supporters describing how he signed a pledge not to accept any fossil fuel money donations to his presidential campaign.
Article originally published on POLITICO Magazine