By Guy Page
The Vermont Daily Chronicle got it wrong yesterday when we reported that the Vermont House has weakened the crucial ‘checkback’ provision in S.5, this year’s climate change bill. In fact, the checkback provision added by the Senate remains unchanged in the House version.
Rep. Laura Sibilia, vice-chair of House Environment and Energy, brought this error to VDC’s attention in the VDC comment section yesterday. We are sincerely, wholeheartedly appreciative of her doing so. Had she not, our reporting would have remained factually inaccurate and superficial and would not have uncovered this fact:
A potential ‘workaround’ of the checkback was already in S.5 when passed by the Senate. And it’s still in the House version, which was approved April 14 by House Environment and Energy and referred to the Appropriations (budget) committee. Approps is reviewing S.5 today and has scheduled a possible vote for late this afternoon.
Here’s the backstory and explanation. S.5 would create a carbon-reduction incentivization program to tax carbon-based heating fuel and redirect the proceeds to non-fossil fuel heating and weatherization. In response to intense citizen pressure – what one senator called “thousands of phone calls and emails” – the Senate added a checkback provision that would 1) require a study on the impact of implementation and 2) an affirmative vote by Legislature before the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) plan can be implemented.
With the addition of the checkback in the Senate bill in early March, concerned Vermonters and besieged senators alike breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that no action would or could happen without an affirmative vote of the Legislature.
As it turns out, that’s not true.
Another clause in S.5 already allows the Public Utilities Commission to issue carbon reduction orders regardless of the study and the two-year checkback.See page 19 of the PDF of S.5 on the legislative website:
§ 8126. RULEMAKING (b) The requirements to adopt rules and any requirements regarding the need for legislative approval before any part of the Clean Heat Standard goes into effect do not in any way impair the Commission’s authority to issue orders or take any other actions, both before and after final rules take effect, to implement and enforce the Clean Heat Standard.
During a brief interview in the State House hallway today, Rep. Sibilia recognized the presence of 8126 (above) but said it’s highly unlikely the PUC would ever actually issue any orders to implement and enforce the Clean Heat Standard.
She cited two reasons. First, the ‘legislative intent’ of S.5 is clear about the two-year pause, study, and affirmative legislation vote. Second, she said, S.5 explicitly says any PUC order may be appealed to the Vermont Supreme Court: “Any order issued under this chapter shall be subject to appeal to the Vermont Supreme Court” (Also on page 19).
Afternoon discussion of S.5 in Appropriations is scheduled to begin at 1:45 PM today and can be watched live or recorded via the committee’s Zoom page.