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Cap and trade would harm our
employers, economy
Rep. Barbara Bailey
There is a proposal in the
Legislature that, if enacted, would harm our state employers and
economy. House Bill 1819, known as cap and trade, is something I
encourage you to learn more about.
I’d like to start with
the premise that I care deeply about our environment. We should be proud
that our state is one of the cleanest and greenest in the nation and its
contribution to global carbon emissions is insignificant.
While
our environment remains important, what many of us are worried about
more is our economy. We continue to see people lose their jobs, homes
and investments. While I’m optimistic our economy will bounce back, as
we navigate this road state lawmakers must be mindful of how their
decisions impact employers. This statement could not be any more
applicable than to cap and trade.
The idea is to cap the amount
of carbon emitted in the state from any business producing over a
certain amount. Businesses would be required to purchase allowances at
auction from a Western Climate Initiative entity to allow them to emit
levels of carbon over this amount. If businesses did not have enough
allowances to cover their emissions, they would have to pay hefty fines.
If businesses did not use all of their allowances, they could sell them
on an open market.
If all this seems confusing, that’s because
it is. First, we would be one of only a few states to implement cap and
trade. So when we encounter problems, we would basically be on our own.
This would put our state at a serious competitive disadvantage with
other states.
Second, the four options for businesses – paying
penalties, buying allowances, reducing production or pursuing off-sets –
are each costly. These costs would be passed on to families through
higher utility, gas, energy, goods and services bills. This would be
devastating for low and moderate income families and pile on to our
economic woes.
Many businesses could also be forced to move,
downsize or close their doors. Imagine what this would look like to an
employer who wanted to start up or relocate from another state. Why
would any entrepreneur or business leader want to deal with such a risky
and expensive system? You could probably answer this question better
than I can.
Third, cap and trade would create a new interstate
commerce market of buying and selling emission allowances. The entity
that would regulate this market would be untested, and the parameters of
its authority are still not clear. This scenario could invite confusion,
greed and artificially inflated prices that many of our businesses could
not afford.
Last, our state is responsible for three-tenths of
one percent of global carbon emissions, and 1.4 percent of the United
States’ carbon emissions. While I support other environmental programs,
including the clean-up of Puget Sound, we simply do not need a risky and
expensive cap and trade system to preserve the clean and green
environment we enjoy today.
If cap and trade is to eventually
evolve into something less punitive to families and businesses, it will
happen at the federal level. In the meantime, let’s not put our state
out on a limb. Instead, let’s focus on solutions to preserve and create
jobs, and balance our state budget without raising taxes. That’s what
families and businesses need.
Rep.
Barbara Bailey, R-Oak Harbor, represents the 10th Legislative District
and is assistant ranking Republican on the House Ways and Means
Committee. She can be contacted at (360) 786-7914 or
bailey.barbara@leg.wa.gov. The 2009 legislative session began Jan. 12
and is scheduled to run 105 days.
For more information, contact:
John
Handy, Assistant Director: (360) 786-5758
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