Last week, we wrote that the November 2016 general election could see two carbon initiatives on the ballot: Carbon Washington’s I-732 carbon tax and an as-yet-undefined proposal from the Alliance for Jobs and Clean Energy. For a while this week, that prediction seemed, well, wrong. As the Seattle Times reported yesterday, I-732 sponsors were considering dropping their proposal and aligning with the Alliance.
But instead, [I-732 leader Yoram] Bauman wrote, the campaign is leaning toward supporting an alternative advocated by the Alliance for Jobs and Clean Energy, a powerful coalition that includes the state’s major environmental and labor groups, among other groups.
“The specifics of an alternative to I-732 are still being worked out, but the general outline is that it will be a ‘carbon fee,’ with significant portions of the fee revenue going to fund clean-energy projects, clean water projects, and forest health,” Bauman wrote.
Today, Bauman announced on the Carbon Washington website that the talks broke down.
Our Executive Committee met today and discussed an updated (more detailed) version of the alternative proposal. We debated the issues and considered arguments on both sides raised by the Executive Committee and by our grassroots base. After almost 3 hours it became clear that the Executive Committee would not accept the alternative proposal in its current form and that there was no chance of modifying the alternative proposal in the very short time frame remaining that would change the Executive Committee’s decision.
Carbon Washington is going ahead with its carbon-fee Initiative 732 after all, instead of bowing out in favor of a competing climate proposal, leaders of the campaign said.
And,
The Alliance for Clean Jobs and Energy is proposing a carbon fee that would raise money to pay for clean and alternative energy programs.
So, again, it’s likely Washington voters will have a pair of carbon choices on the November ballot.
