LPDD October 2022 Newsletter — Model Climate Laws Initiative

New LPDD Model Laws

Last month, the LPDD team published a ModelState Law Expediting the Siting of Utility-Scale Renewable Energy Generating Systems. This model legislation aims to expedite and institutionalize uniform processes to site facilities for generating, transporting and storing renewable energy. The model has two parallel goals: (1) providing a state-wide authority with procedures for rapidly siting utility-scale renewable generation facilities, and (2) maintaining local authority within reasonable bounds for the siting of any other renewable generation facilities. This comprehensive statutory approach is designed both for states having (relatively) highly developed decarbonization statutory regimes and those without them, and carefully allocates authority between states and localities, while also establishing judicial review procedures.

New External Resources

modelclimatelaws.org is being continually updated with new, external legal resources. Below is a selection of recently added resources, including more in a series of climate-related measures recently passed in California, which we began cataloguing in last month's newsletter:

Washington's Cap-and-Trade Regulation: In October, the Washington State Dept. of Ecology finalized greenhouse cap-and-trade program regulations. The regulations were promulgated in furtherance of the state's 2021 Climate Commitment Act. Washington regulators have noted that they seek to align their market with California's and Quebec's, and may eventually link the two programs. Washington's market, once fully rolled out, will cover 75% of the state’s largest emitters of carbon dioxide (those releasing more than 25,000 metric tons of CO2 equivalent per year). Electric and gas utilities and fuel suppliers will be covered by the program starting in 2023. Washington’s program also will require air pollution monitoring to ensure air quality improvements, and will seek to avoid CO2 equivalent offsets contributing to pollution in marginalized communities.
Sustainable Steel Principles: In September, six top lenders to the global steel sector — Citi, Crédit Agricole CIB, ING, Societe Generale, Standard Chartered and UniCredit — announced the signing of the Sustainable STEEL Principles (SSP), the first Climate-Aligned Finance agreement for lenders to the steel industry. The SSP provides a methodology for banks to measure and report the emissions associated with their loan portfolios compared to net-zero emissions pathways. In doing so, the framework informs banks of how emissions-intensive their steel loans are relative to the net-zero pathway needed to stay within the planet’s remaining carbon budget.
RMI Reports on Just Transitions for Coal Communities: In October, RMI released two reports on the economic transition of coal communities. The first report, Coal Community Transition Policy in Action, analyzes 16 bills passed by states since 2011 to present a comprehensive review of state legislation that supports coal communities and workers facing economic transition. The second, Ensuring an Inclusive Clean Energy Transition, introduces a policy framework, based on previous platforms and principles advanced by stakeholders, that outlines the risks facing fossil fuel workers and communities in the shift to clean energy. That report provides guiding principles for supporting these communities in transition.
California Community Solar Law: In September, California enacted a new community solar law designed to bolster a lagging market that has been unable to flourish under programs put forward by utilities and regulators in the past. AB 2316 adds a new focus on grid reliability and equity to the community solar landscape. Compensation for community solar will be pegged to the actual value of electricity at the time it’s delivered to the grid, incentivizing solar plus storage configurations that can deliver power during evening peaks -- a key consideration for a state facing grid reliability challenges. In addition, at least 51 percent of subscribers to a project will have to be low-income, making sure the benefits of community solar are broadly distributed.
California Subsidy Phaseout for Gas Line Extensions: In September, the California Public Utilities Commission unanimously voted to eliminate ratepayer subsidies for the extension of new gas lines amid a statewide push to decarbonize the building sector. California builders and developers previously had access to a variety of ratepayer-funded subsidies to help pay for new connections to the gas utility system – they could have a portion of their costs offset by fixed allowances per residential unit, receive refunds paid back over a decade, or claim a one-time 50% discount. This nation-leading phaseout will eliminate all of those forms of subsidy.
California Ban on New Gas Heaters: Also in September, the California Air Resources Board approved revisions to their State Implementation Plan under the Clean Air Act, which will require the approval of regulations to ban the sale of new gas heaters and furnaces starting in 2030. Under the approved plan, homes will be required to install zero-emissions alternatives, like electric heaters. The requirement will apply to new construction and also the replacement of gas furnaces and heaters in existing buildings.
California's Natural Carbon Removal Target: In September, California passed AB 1757, requiring the state to develop an achievable carbon removal target for natural and working lands. The new legislation builds on the framework established in the state's Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006. It requires the Natural Resources Agency to determine an ambitious range of targets for natural carbon sequestration that reduce greenhouse gas emissions for 2030, 2038, and 2045, and to review and update the state's Natural and Working Lands Climate Smart Strategy to achieve these targets.
Climate and Energy Implications of Crypto-Assets in the United States: In September, the White House published a report on climate and energy implications of crypto-mining in the US. The report concluded that crypto-asset activity is estimated to result in approximately 25-50 million metric tons of CO2 emissions per year, similar to the emissions from diesel fuel used in railroads in the United States. The report recommended that the US government take steps to ensure crypto mining operations do not reduce electric system reliability or drive up costs on the nation’s power grid. The report also recommended that DOE develop energy efficiency standards for crypto mining equipment and collect additional data from crypto miners and electric utilities, including mining energy usage and fuel mix and participation rates in demand response programs
Boston's Urban Forests Plan: In September, Boston published an urban forests plan that stipulates tripling the number of city employees focused on trees, from 5 to 16 people, and creating a new forestry office in an effort to expand tree coverage in the city. The report notes that disparities in tree coverage between neighborhoods in Boston has been associated with a 10-degree difference in day and nighttime temperatures, contributing to greater risk for heat related illnesses and flooding.
New Jersey Boosts Offshore Wind Target: In September, New Jersey's Governor signed Executive Order 307, increasing the state’s target of 7,500 megawatts from wind turbines by 2035 to 11,000 MW by 2040, a nearly 50% leap. The Order also directs the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities to study the feasibility of increasing the target further.

Upcoming Events

Overview of ABA SEER Pro Bono Opportunities | Webinar | October 27, 2022 at 3:00pm ET

On October 27th, members of the LPDD team will join the ABA Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources to discuss pro bono work opportunities. Our team will discuss drafting or peer reviewing decarbonization-related model legislation for the Legal Pathways to Deep Decarbonization Project. We will be joined by the Thriving Earth Exchange, who will discuss opportunities providing legal advice or conducting research for community-based projects. You can register to attend here.

Get Involved!

Not sure how to support our work? Check out our Get Involved page to see the many avenues by which lawyers can join us, and get in contact!

This update highlights and summarizes recent additions to the Legal Pathways to Deep Decarbonization (LPDD) website, which houses actual and model laws addressing the causes of climate change in the United States.

The Legal Pathways to Deep Decarbonization Model Law Project (LPDD-MLP) is a pro bono effort to draft model laws for use by legislators at the federal, state and local levels to support their efforts to achieve deep reductions in fossil fuel use and greenhouse gas emissions. The project is based on recommendations from the groundbreaking book Legal Pathways to Deep Decarbonization in the United States (Michael Gerrard and John C. Dernbach, eds., 2019). The work is supported by Columbia University's Sabin Center for Climate Change Law and Widener University Commonwealth Law School’s Environmental Law and Sustainability Center. Dozens of law firms and individual lawyers are contributing to this pro-bono effort as drafters, peer reviewers or in reaching out to policymakers.

Our website, modelclimatelaws.org, contains over 50 model laws that are a starting place for discussion and collaboration among elected officials, non-profit groups, and the private sector for enabling the U.S. to address climate change by reducing U.S. GHG emissions to zero by 2050 or earlier. The site includes several Top 10 lists for some of the key categories, like electric vehicles, PUC’s, buildings and other topics as a short-hand introduction. In addition, the site references hundreds of other actions that states and other governmental bodies have taken to move towards decarbonization more rapidly. By providing policymakers the tools to achieve deep decarbonization, the Project will help achieve a restructuring of the energy economy, thus alleviating the worst effects of climate change, which are disproportionately suffered by marginalized communities, while providing such positive benefits as economic security, social equity, and environmental justice (EJ).

Please contact us to talk about getting involved in drafting and peer reviewing legislation, to provide suggestions and feedback on the drafts and to talk about how we can help you support your climate change efforts.