Action | Repeal CO 2 Budget Trading Program as required by Executive Order 9 (Revision A22) |
Stage | NOIRA |
Comment Period | Ended on 10/26/2022 |
Virginia should remain in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). Turning our backs on RGGI would be a foolish self-inflicted injury, harming the Commonwealth and its citizens.
RGGI benefits the Commonwealth and its people in numerous ways. For example:
These benefits are clear. As Virginia’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has said, RGGI has “a long track record of emission reductions since the beginning of the program.” In fact, compared to non-RGGI states, RGGI states have not only reduced power plant carbon emissions 90% faster, but also have benefited from more than 30% faster economic growth! These environmental, health and economic benefits also have multiplier effects, by making Virginia a more attractive location for businesses seeking to relocate. We have already seen examples of this positive effect.
Turning our backs on all these benefits would be pure folly, especially since the argument for doing so boils down to an entirely speculative assumption that utilities would voluntarily lower (by a very small amount) what they charge ratepayers if RGGI did not exist. Elected and appointed leaders owe a duty of responsible action to the current – and future – residents of the Commonwealth, and seeking to destroy such a successful program as RGGI would be petty, short-sighted, and counterproductive.
Moreover, neither the Governor, nor the DEQ, nor the Air Pollution Control Board has the power to contravene Virginia law. In 2020, the Virginia General Assembly enacted the Clean Energy and Community Flood Preparedness Act (SB 1027), which mandated Virginia’s participation in RGGI. Until and unless this law is repealed, the Governor has the sworn obligation to ensure the faithful execution of its provisions, and in like fashion, no administrative agency or other entity has the power to flout the law.
For all of these legal, prudential, economic, health, safety, and economic reasons, Virginia should and must remain a good-faith participant in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.