Is Washington’s Climate Commitment Act In Trouble?
Nives Dolsak and Aseem Prakash
Washington state’s 2021 Climate Commitment Act (CCA) capped carbon emissions and established the emission trading system (termed Cap and Invest). It is in danger of getting repealed in November via a public referendum (Initiative 2117). The lessons from this ongoing saga extend beyond Washington because they illuminate climate policy’s political challenges.
Political scientist Harold Lasswell noted that politics is about who gets what, when, and how. Climate mitigation or decarbonization is a political issue because it creates a global benefit (with local co-benefits) but imposes local costs (such as higher energy costs, or the loss of employment in specific industries). With inflation and economic insecurity, voters are less willing to bear these costs, even when they think climate change is an important policy issue. This is the key political problem that Washington state’s CCA, and decarbonization policy in general, confront.
Climate Pricing in Washington
Washington state is politically polarized, with the Cascade Mountains separating the conservative East from the liberal West. Between 2013-2018, the State House was controlled by Democrats and the State Senate by Republicans. This division made it difficult to enact climate policy via legislative means.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/prakashdolsak/2024/07/31/is-washingtons-climate-commitment-act-in-trouble/
