Breaking news! After being bottled up for weeks, the Clean Energy Jobs Act (CEJA), SB516, was moved yesterday (4/5/2019) by a House committee to the House floor for a final vote, possibly TODAY. Your emails and phone calls have made a difference! But the General Assembly has only three days left to act before it adjourns Monday at midnight - or we lose another year and fall further behind on climate action in Maryland.
Here is where things stand right now, on Saturday morning:
What we know about the process
- The bill will be debated by the House, and amendments may be introduced and voted on, when the House convenes today at noon – what is known as "Second Reader"
- The bill will be put for a final House vote – what is known as "Third Reader" – if and when it passes Second Reader; this final vote also may happen today
- If and when the bill passes the House, it likely will need to be approved again by the Senate (or further negotiated) since the House version is expected to differ somewhat from what the Senate has approved
What we know about the bill -- the good news
- The clean energy bill on the House floor raises Maryland’s requirement for renewable energy (which otherwise will flatline beginning in 2020), requires state planning to reach 100% renewable energy by 2040, and increases funding for clean energy workforce development. Maryland will:
- Jump from 2.5% in-state solar to 14.5% by 2030
- Move from just over 350 MW of offshore wind in 2022 to a minimum of just under 1600 MW of offshore wind in 2030
- Ensure the remaining expansion of renewable energy will come from our other “Tier 1” renewable energy resources like land-based wind and other, not so clean, resources. Tier 1 includes things like land-based wind, solar not already in the solar “carve-out,” biomass, and trash incineration. We worked hard this year to remove trash incineration as a Tier 1 resource (see below). In 2020 Tier 1 is scheduled to be 22.5% -- in 2030 Tier 1 resources (i.e. not offshore wind and solar) are projected to be approximately 26%. The growth in Tier 1 is expected to come from land-based wind due to the continued price reductions in wind power, which will out-compete growth of other Tier 1 resources like biomass and burning trash.
- The solar increase alone is equal to all of the coal-powered electricity generated in the state in 2017.
- The bill will bring new green jobs to Maryland, provide training for those new jobs, and support small businesses and businesses owned by women, minorities, and veterans so they can join the new green economy.
Through the legislative process, the bill got even stronger in the jobs category as positive provisions for project labor agreements and community benefits agreements have been added into the original bill.
What we know about the bill -- the bad news
- The Sierra Club opposes clean energy incentives for combustion-based resources that should be going to non-polluting wind and solar technologies, and we have fought this session to remove trash incineration from the list of “qualified resources” able to receive renewable energy credits.
- Unfortunately, the House committee amended the Senate bill so that the bill now provides for trash incineration to continue to be subsidized. Because of this and the minimal time left in session, we do not anticipate that the General Assembly will remove the incentive for burning trash this session.
What we don’t know about the bill
- The House Committee made a few more amendments to the bill, and we have not yet been able to see the official legislative language. We are working to determine these specifics.
With regard to trash incineration, for the second year in a row, thanks to your advocacy and amazing organizing by community groups in Baltimore, Montgomery County, and elsewhere in the state, the Maryland Senate voted overwhelmingly to end the renewable energy incentive for burning trash. We are committed to continuing this fight after this session, and we will prevail. Maryland must reserve clean energy incentives for non-polluting sources like wind and solar – for the health of our planet, and for the health of communities in Maryland that suffer the most from burning trash and fossil fuels.
The clock is running out – science tells us that we have to act urgently, right now, to avoid the worst damage from climate change. The Clean Energy Jobs Act commits Maryland to significant clean energy growth to combat climate change. Let’s make sure the Clean Energy Jobs Act is set to be a strong, powerful vehicle for climate action.
Stay tuned to our social media feeds on Twitter and Facebook all throughout Saturday and Sunday and Monday. We’ll keep you posted on the progress!
Thank you!
David Smedick
Policy and Campaign Director
Maryland Sierra Club