Democratic midterm wins in 11 states lead to a wave of clean energy legislation
State legislatures have introduced at least 329 climate change bills this year that address greenhouse gas emissions, up from 188 in 2018 and 255 in 2017, according to an Associated Press tally of energy legislation monitored by the New Energy Economy at Colorado State University. About 30% of the bills come from states with new Democratic governors or legislative majorities such as Illinois and Connecticut, the AP tally found.
“There’s definitely a lot of push following the elections of folks wanting to really pursue renewable portfolio standards as a way to expand renewable energy and reduce carbon emissions,” said Michael Bueno, energy and climate coordinator at the National Caucus of Environmental Legislators, a nonpartisan network of more than 1,000 state legislators nationwide.
Maine’s new governor, for example, has vowed to get 100% of the state’s energy from renewables by 2050 and has announced subsidies to put 1,000 more electric vehicles on Maine roads.
In New Mexico, Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed legislation requiring the state to get all of its electricity from carbon-free sources by 2045. California and Hawaii were the first states to commit to such carbon-free goals.
In Illinois, one of the nation’s top producers of emissions, lawmakers are considering a bill to bring the state to 100% renewable energy by 2050 — a target Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker endorsed on the campaign trail.
New Hampshire’s Democratic-controlled Legislature passed bills allowing towns and other entities to build larger solar projects and shifting more than $12million from a regional cap-and-trade program into energy efficiency programs. A separate bill requiring utilities to procure 60% of their power from renewables by 2040 passed the Senate.
New York, where Democrats now wield large majorities in both legislative bodies for the first time in a decade, is considering several initiatives to reduce climate-changing carbon emissions, including Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s proposal to move to 100% renewables by 2040.
https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-clean-energy-states-20190427-story.html
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