Initiative to Overturn WA Cap and Trade Gets ‘Required’ Signatures
Initiative 2117, led by the group Let's Go Washington, has passed its first test.
Signatures turned into Secretary of State's office last week
According to information from Let's Go WA and The Center Square, the initiative would overturn the cap and trade auction and provisions of the Climate Commitment Act, leaving the plan all but dead.
Since January, the cap-and-trade auctions have seen a huge spike in WA gas prices, and the Department of Ecology has yet to act on requirements to abstain the agriculture and ag transportation industries from having to absorb the costs.
Businesses have had to purchase carbon or pollution credits, just so they can keep operating. These have resulted in massive gas price hikes for consumers.
I-2117 is one of six citizen-filed Initiatives. It's the first to meet the signature threshold for submission. The petitions totaled just over 418,000. If at least 324,516 valid signatures are presented to the legislature on December 29th, one of three things can happen.
The legislature can choose to enact the Initiative and repeal the CCA, or if they choose not to take action, it would qualify for the ballot in the next statewide election. Or, a third option, the legislature can choose to modify the existing law. In that case, both the revision and the Initiative would be on the ballot.
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