July 18, 2017 - CalMatters

Assembly GOP Leader Chad Mayes and seven fellow Republicans cast vital votes to ensure passage of cap and trade in California.

Climate Change, Environment, Politics

Latest California innovation: A Republican case for cap and trade

by Laurel Rosenhall July 18, 2017June 23, 2020

In California, a deep blue state leading the charge to curb climate change, the question for many Republicans isn’t whether global warming is happening—it’s what kind of policies are best to address it.

The most debated portion of the Garcia bill involves an existing loophole under the current cap and trade law that allows industrial facilities to get around retrofitting old, less-efficient equipment by purchasing pollution offsets and continuing to emit. But in addressing one cap-and-trade loophole, Garcia’s bill appears to open another: While it requires local air boards to establish equipment retrofitting programs, because the original law’s language was not struck, facilities could continue to trade pollution credits in lieu of replacing older equipment. Such a program, known as RECLAIM, is operated by the South Coast Air Quality Management District. During floor debate, Garcia made it clear that her bill did not intend to create that loophole, but the language remained in the version that passed.

Economy, Environment

Newly passed pollution bill is ‘downpayment’ to environmental justice

by Julie Cart July 18, 2017June 23, 2020