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The committee on Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture to whom was referred the petition (accompanied by petition, Senate, No. 541), relative to reduce carbon dioxide emissions through participation in the regional greenhouse gas initiative, reported, recommending that the same ought to pass, with an amendment substituting a new draft of the same title (Senate, No. 2422). Pamela P. Resor, |
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of
Representatives in General Court assembled,
SECTION 1. Whereas, scientific findings indicate that the increase in greenhouse gas emissions, including carbon dioxide, is accelerating the natural greenhouse effect resulting in changes in the Earth’s climate;
Whereas, such climate changes pose serious health risks to humans, as well as danger to ecosystems worldwide;
Whereas, this act creates a strong incentive for the creation, development, and deployment of more efficient fuel burning technologies and processes, energy efficiency and renewable energy supplies which will lead to less dependence on the import of fossil fuels;
It is hereby resolved that the Commonwealth shall enter into and fully comply with the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.
SECTION 2. Chapter 111 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2004 Official Edition, is hereby amended, by inserting after section 142O the following section:-
Section 142P. Greenhouse Gas Emission; Definitions; Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.
(a) As used in this section, the following words shall have the following meanings:
“Allowance”, an authorization to emit a fixed amount of carbon dioxide.
“Cap and trade program”, a policy approach for controlling emissions from a group of emitting sources, such as electric generating stations, at a total cost that is expected to be lower than if sources were regulated individually by setting an overall cap, or maximum amount of emissions from all regulated sources per compliance period, that will achieve the desired environmental effects. A certain number of authorizations to emit in the form of emissions allowances are created, issued and made available to various persons, companies, organizations or other entities through a sale by auction or direct allocation. The total number of allowances made available in any compliance period cannot exceed the cap.“Department”, department of environmental protection.
“Division”, division of energy resources.
“Office”, executive office of energy and environmental affairs.
“Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative” or “RGGI”, Memorandum of Understanding dated“Secretary”,
the secretary of the executive office of energy and environmental affairs.
(b) The department shall, in consultation with the division, through rules and regulations, establish a carbon dioxide cap and trade program that will limit and then reduce the total carbon dioxide emissions released by electric generating stations that generate electric power in the Commonwealth. The department’s rules and regulations establishing a carbon dioxide cap and trade program shall be designed so as to fully comply with the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) and permit the holders of carbon dioxide allowances to trade them in a regional market to be established through the RGGI.
(c) There shall be established and set up on the
books of the commonwealth a separate trust fund to be known as the “RGGI Auction
Trust Fund” (the “Fund”), consisting of amounts credited to the fund in
accordance with this chapter. The fund shall be administered in accordance with
the provisions of this chapter by the division of energy resources, acting by
and through its commissioner and subject to the approval of the secretary, and
shall be held in trust exclusively for the purposes described herein. The fund
shall be an expendable trust fund and shall not be subject to appropriation or
allotment by the commonwealth, and the division shall report monthly by source
all amounts credited to such fund and all expenditures by subsidiary made from
such fund on the
(d) The department shall provide in its regulations that one hundred percent of all allowances, issued under the program in the Commonwealth shall be sold by auction.
The proceeds recovered from the allowance auctions shall be deposited in the Fund. The proceeds shall be used without further appropriation and only for the following purposes, in a proportion to be determined by the division with the approval of the secretary:
(1) to promote energy efficiency, conservation, and demand response;
Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, the department may set aside up to one percent of the state’s annual allocation of allowances to support the voluntary green power market, which enables electricity consumers to support the development of renewable resources; and may withhold from auction such allowances of vintage years 2009 through 2012 as are necessary to provide a transition to RGGI from the program established pursuant to 310 CMR 7.29.(e) The division shall promulgate regulations
governing the auction of allowances.
The division may engage an independent contractor determined by the office to be qualified to conduct the auction in a manner that assures the efficiency of the auction, or may provide for participation in a regional auction.
(f) The responsibilities created by establishing a carbon dioxide cap and trade program shall be in addition to all other responsibilities imposed by any other general or special law or rule or regulation and shall not diminish or reduce any power or authority of the department including the authority to adopt standards and regulations necessary for the Commonwealth to join and fully participate in any multi-state program, at any stage in the development and implementation of such a program, intended to control emissions of carbon dioxide and/or other substances that are determined by the department to be damaging and/or altering the climate.
(g) Notwithstanding
any general or special law or regulation to the contrary, the state comptroller
shall grant a permanent waiver or exemption from any and all applicable charges
or assessments made against the proceeds from the auction of allowances
pursuant to this section by the office of the comptroller pursuant to its
authority under sections 5D of chapter 29 of the General Laws.
SECTION 3. On
or before
