Climate 411: California

This blog was co-authored by Janet Zamudio, Western States Climate Policy Intern The last week has been eventful in Washington, seeing the end of legislative session last Thursday and the first quarterly cap-and-invest auction of 2024, which posted results today. With the legislative session wrapped up and budgets passed, we now know what additional spending […]

This blog was co-authored by Katelyn Roedner Sutter, California State Director  Results of the latest Western Climate Initiative auction were released today, and we continue to see strong demand for allowances. This was the first quarterly auction of 2024, and it was a strong start for this marquee climate program. This auction is expected to […]

In leading climate states, you’ll find trailblazing projects that are benefiting people’s lives and cutting costly pollution right now. In Washington, young people ride the ferry across Puget sound and buses around the state for free. In California, low-income residents get money-saving home energy efficiency upgrades at no cost. And in New York, businesses and […]

Results were released today for Washington’s fourth quarterly cap-and-invest auction, which was held on December 6th. The results from this sold-out auction show continued strong demand for allowances in the program, which has brought in substantial revenue for the state of Washington to reinvest in its communities. This is the final auction of 2023, marking […]

Today, the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) released the results from Washington’s second Allowance Price Containment Reserve (APCR) auction, held on November 8th. At this auction, all 5 million available APCR allowances were sold at the Tier 1 price of $51.90. This auction, along with three previous sold-out cap-and-invest auctions, continues to show strong […]

This year, California marked the 10th anniversary of its landmark cap-and-trade program, and the Golden State has good reason to celebrate: California saw reduced year-on-year emissions from nearly every sector covered by the program. On top of delivering on critical emissions reductions, cap-and-trade has generated revenue resulting in $9.3 billion implemented through California Climate Investments […]

Results were released today for Washington’s third quarterly cap-and-invest auction, which was held on August 30th. The results from this sold-out auction continue to demonstrate strong demand for allowances in this program, which has brought in significant revenue for the state of Washington to reinvest in its communities. These results follow on two previous sold-out […]

Yesterday, the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) released the results from Washington’s first Allowance Price Containment Reserve (APCR) auction, held on August 9th. At this auction, all 1,054,000 of the available APCR allowances were sold at the two APCR tier prices of $51.90 and $66.68, with 527,000 allowances available at each price tier. This […]

This blog was co-authored by Mary Catherine Hanafee LaPlante, Intern, U.S. Climate Policy As the hottest summer on record scorches the state, California leaders are working to tackle the impacts of climate change head-on by strengthening an essential tool in their climate policy toolbox: the state’s cap-and-trade program. Last year, the California Air Resources Board […]

This blog is co-authored by NRDC’s Britt Carmon, Guillermo A. Ortiz, and David Pettit. It originally appeared here. California has long grappled with the challenge of improving its air quality, which ranks as the worst in the country. Heavy-duty diesel trucks, which are significant contributors to air and climate pollution, make it difficult for the state […]

This blog was co-authored by Alex DeGolia, Director, U.S. Climate. With historic federal climate investments in law, states are now in the driver’s seat to leverage this funding to drive U.S. climate progress forward — adopting bold policies of their own that limit pollution, boost jobs and bring down energy costs. States that have made […]

This blog was authored by Delia Novak, Western States Climate Policy Intern, U.S. Region. Since the launch of Washington’s cap-and-invest program in January, the state has raised over $850 million in revenue through two consecutive, sold-out auctions under the program. These cap-and-invest auctions provide critical funding for the clean energy and climate resilience projects that […]

When the California Air Resources Board (CARB) finalized its Scoping Plan last year, it marked a critical milestone in charting an ambitious – but achievable – path toward a safer, climate future for communities across the state. Now, it’s time for CARB to put that plan into action. The good news is that air regulators […]

When the California Air Resources Board (CARB) finalized its Scoping Plan last year, it marked a critical milestone in charting an ambitious – but achievable – path toward a safer, climate future for communities across the state. Now, it’s time for CARB to put that plan into action. The good news is that air regulators […]

Blog co-authored by Kjellen Belcher, Manager, U.S. Climate Today’s results from Washington’s second cap-and-invest auction – most notably selling 100% of allowances – continue to signal strong demand for allowances and confidence in the program, bringing significant revenue for the state to reinvest in Washington communities. This is only the second auction held for the […]

It’s been two months since the debut auction of Washington’s cap-and-invest program — the nation’s most ambitious climate program to date — which puts a firm, declining limit on climate pollution across the state’s economy. Since then, state leaders have turned their attention to the next major decision facing the program: whether to link up […]

This blog was co-authored by Delia Novak, Western States Climate Policy Intern, U.S. Region Results of the latest Western Climate Initiative auction were released today, and while the solid demand for allowances indicates a stable market, there are hints of uncertainty about next steps for the cap-and-trade program. Now that the California Air Resources Board […]

This blog was co-authored by Jolette Westbrook, Director and Senior Attorney, Equitable Regulatory Solutions. “What will it take to decarbonize the gas distribution system?” That was the key question that a group of stakeholders from the non-profit and utility sectors across the United States tried to answer over the last year. There are many changes […]

This post was co-authored with Katelyn Roedner Sutter, California State Director at EDF. Last month, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) released their final Scoping Plan following a lengthy process of drafting, workshops, modeling and public feedback. The Scoping Plan, which is reviewed and updated every five years, is California’s roadmap for meeting its 2030 […]

California’s electric grid is amongst the cleanest in the country, and it’s getting even cleaner. The state recently cemented our clean energy policy leadership by requiring 90% zero-carbon electricity sales by 2035, and 95% by 2040. Given the long-lived nature of energy infrastructure, these dates are not some far off future problem — the first […]