Perhaps nowhere is the positive fallout from the 2018 elections more evident than in the realm of state-level action on climate change. In fact, I believe the raft of recently-passed and proposed new climate and clean energy policies moving through state legislatures and across governors’ desks is unparalleled by anything that’s happened in this country since 2007-2008, when Democratic officials elected during the 2006 wave advanced the first real nationwide suite of state-level climate policies.
One of the most significant developments from that first wave of state action was the establishment of renewable energy portfolio standards, laws mandating major utilities obtain a certain percentage of their energy from renewable sources within a given time period. Some states already had an RPS prior to 2007, but the number went up dramatically after the 2006 elections. Today well over half of U.S. states have some sort of RPS.
That early wave of RPS policies also roughly coincided with the launch of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a cap-and-trade program for reducing carbon emissions from utilities in Northeast states. Though officially launched by seven states in 2005, the RGGI picked up new members in 2007 and gained additional momentum at a time when state-level climate leadership was in the air.
Collectively state RPS policies, the RGGI, and California’s Global Warming Solutions Act (which passed in 2006 and helped set the stage for climate action in other states) are responsible for a large part of what progress we’ve made so far cutting U.S. carbon emissions. These policies also helped grow renewable energy industries to the point where they became scale-able, causing the cost of clean energy to go down dramatically and thereby spurring further growth.
Now we’re seeing a new wave of state-level action—and not a moment too soon. Even as forecasts for climate disruption have become ever grimmer, many states have begun closing in on or already reached the clean energy goals they set over a decade ago. To continue making further progress, these states needed to set new and more ambitious goals. Here are a few examples of how states across the country are meeting the challenge:
California: California’s recent wave of climate action can’t actually be attributed to last year’s elections since it took place in 2018. However, it deserves mention both because it is so significant, and because California once again set a standard other states are striving to emulate. Climate and clean energy laws passed by California in 2018 include a commitment to 100% renewable electricity by 2045 (and 60% by 2030), policies to expand use of electric vehicles, and a variety of incentives for adoption of clean energy and efficiency programs. In addition, on his way out of office then-Governor Jerry Brown signed an executive order calling for the state’s entire energy footprint (not just electricity) to be carbon neutral by 2045.
Nevada: The most immediate major clean energy outcome from the 2018 elections was approval by Nevada voters of Question 6, requiring 50% of the states electricity come from renewables by 2050. While hardly ambitious compared to the California gold standard, the combination of this ballot initiative’s success and the election of a new pro-clean energy governor who will ensure it gets implemented is still a big step in the right direction.
New Mexico: Earlier this month newly-elected Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico signed into law a bill making hers the third state in the nation (after California and Hawaii) to mandate publicly regulated utilities source 100% of their electricity from renewables by 2045. However, the state could soon be bested by a Southwestern neighbor, as Colorado’s new governor has an even more ambitious goal of meeting the 100% mark by 2040.
Illinois: Perhaps the single most significant piece of climate legislation currently under consideration at the state level is Illinois’ Clean Energy Jobs act. Not only would it mandate 100% renewable electricity by 2050 (a goal supported by newly-elected Gov. J.B. Pritzker), it would also incentivize clean transportation and transit while creating thousands of clean energy jobs. These goals are especially impressive given that Illinois currently obtains only 8% of its electricity from renewables—unlike many states setting 100% targets, which are starting from a much cleaner baseline.
Minnesota: Both newly-elected Gov. Tim Walz and certain state legislators are advocating proposals that would commit Minnesota to 100% renewable electricity by about mid-century. There are some discrepancies between the competing policies—for example it’s unclear whether the goal would have to be met by 2045 or 2050, and whether nuclear power would be counted as “clean.” Minnesota also has only one house of the legislature controlled by Democrats, so clean energy bills face a rockier road there than in some other states. Still, the forward momentum is encouraging.
The Northeast: Building on the RGGI—which deals only with carbon from electricity generation—a group of nine Northeastern states announced in December they were launching a new regional cap-and-trade program to cut transportation-related emissions. Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Vermont, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Virginia are the founding members of this initiative, and all except Pennsylvania also belong to the RGGI. Although development of the transportation program was underway well before November 2018, the election certainly boosted the initiative’s prospects. For example Maine, under the leadership of newly-elected climate hawk Gov. Janet Mills, is now widely expected to join. It’s also worth noting governors of several of the nine members states are Republicans, testimony to the fact that climate action in the Northeast has long been a much more bipartisan affair than in most parts of the country.
Oregon: For the last few years Oregon has been inching ever-closer to passing an ambitious policy known as the Clean Energy Jobs Bill, which would raise money for clean energy and efficiency programs by putting a cap on carbon emissions. The 2018 elections, which saw the re-election of Democratic Gov. Kate Brown and Democrats elected to supermajorities in both houses of the legislature, may have provided the final push the bill required to make it into law. Although not a done deal yet, the Clean Energy Jobs Bill is widely expected to pass this year.
Washington: Like many others in my current state of residence, I was disappointed when millions of oil industry dollars sank a Washington ballot initiative that would have raised money for climate mitigation by charging a modest fee for carbon pollution from major emitters. However, partly thanks to the engagement of thousands of people around the I-1631 fight, and partly due to the election of new climate hawks in both houses of the legislature, Washington’s prospects for making progress on climate action look better than they have in a long while. Under consideration are bills that would commit the state to 100% renewable energy by 2045, hasten electrification of the transportation system, make buildings more energy efficient, and more. Gov. Jay Inslee is a strong climate hawk and chances of these policies becoming law look good.
The above represent just a sampling of state-level climate and clean energy policies advancing in part thanks to the 2018 election results. Of course not all these policies are guaranteed to pass, but some have already become law and prospects look good for many others.
It should also go without saying that while all this is encouraging, progress at the state level can never entirely make up for the roadblock to federal progress presented by Trump and Mitch McConnell. Still, amid all the bad news about climate change it’s important to recognize where forward strides are being made so these advances can serve as templates for even more ambitious action in the future—including at the federal level. The progress we’re now seeing in the states is a tantalizing glimpse of what real climate leadership looks like.
Did you appreciate this post? For more stories like it, follow me on Twitter at @nickengelfried.