How Jay Inslee would address fossil fuels

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee on Monday released his Freedom from Fossil Fuels plan, an aggressive set of proposals aimed at weaning the U.S. off the production of fuels like oil, coal and natural gas.

The plan is the presidential hopeful's fourth major climate announcement of the election cycle, following his proposals for 100% clean electricity by 2030, a $3 trillion public investment plan for climate, and a proposal to reorient U.S. foreign policy to fight climate change.

What would the plan do?

Inslee’s set of 16 policy initiatives aims to “phase out” U.S. fossil fuel production and exports completely, though it names no date to achieve that target.

The plan would ban all new fossil fuel production on public lands, which today accounts for about a quarter of U.S. carbon emissions, and establish a presidential commission of cabinet-level officials to further reduce production.

Inslee would also support legislation that would expand restrictions on oil and gas drilling on private land and “outright bans on the most-destructive practices” like mountaintop removal coal mining and hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” for natural gas.

Inslee would also support legislation for a carbon tax — labeled a “Climate Pollution Fee” — that would “initially be set low” and increase “steadily and aggressively over time,” though no exact prices are given. The proposal is a departure for his campaign, which has to date focused on more popular renewable energy policies, but Inslee has twice unsuccessfully attempted to approve a carbon price as governor of Washington.

The plan would also see an Inslee administration apply a “climate test” to all new infrastructure approved by FERC and federal land management agencies, pushing them to reject pipelines or other fossil projects. The Department of Energy's Office of Fossil Energy would become the "Office of Industrial Decarbonization," to reflect a change in its mission.

Finally, the plan would also increase retraining and assistance for displaced fossil fuel workers and increase oversight of corporate climate risks at the Securities and Exchange Commission.

How much would it cost?

Inslee's campaign did not release a cost estimate for the new set of proposals but has previously called for $3 trillion in public spending over a decade as part of its overall climate plan.

Who would it help?

The plan aims to help the U.S. and other nations avoid the worst impacts of global climate change while also assisting residents dealing with front-line impacts of fossil fuel production and transport, such as those living near coal mining, gas drilling or pipelines.

What have other Democrats proposed?

Inslee’s proposal is the second detailed plan this cycle to combat U.S. fossil fuel production, though other candidates have touched on the subject.

Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren in April released a proposal to ban fossil fuel production on public lands, expand wind and solar production and restore the boundaries of national monuments shrunk by the Trump administration.

In the 2016 cycle, Sen. Bernie Sanders, (I-Vt.), proposed a ban on natural gas fracking and other restrictions on fossil fuel production and export. Those policies are still listed on the climate page of his website, but he has not yet spelled them out in a detailed proposal this cycle.

Those candidates and others have coalesced around the idea of a Green New Deal pushed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.). They call for aggressive climate action paired with ambitious employment, health care and infrastructure proposals, though lawmakers, candidates and movement leaders are still working through the details.

Who opposes it?

Republicans and fossil fuel companies and employees are sure to vehemently oppose the plan, which would fundamentally reshape an economy that today produces more oil and natural gas than any other nation and relies on fossil fuels for about 80% of its total energy consumption.

The plan may also draw criticism from some Democrats and environmental groups that prefer to focus on more popular aspects of climate action, like boosting wind and solar, rather than the sticky issues of fuel production and taxes.

Green New Deal activists, for instance, have largely avoided proposals to curtail drilling and pipelines in the past year, in part to preserve ties with labor unions, many of which have workers in the fossil fuel sector. Moderate environmental groups also typically distance themselves from calls to zero-out oil and gas production.

How would it work?

Much of the detailed policymaking envisioned by the plan would be done by a Presidential Commission on Energy Transition, a panel featuring leadership from ten federal agencies, including Energy, EPA, FERC and others, alongside representatives from state and tribal governments.

That commission would focus on identifying actions the president and Congress can take to reduce greenhouse gases at a pace that meets Inslee’s previously announced climate target of net zero carbon emissions by 2045.

An Inslee administration would ban fossil production on federal lands on “Day 1,” and would also seek avenues to restrict fossil fuel production on non-public lands. Those could include mandatory set-backs that limit the proximity of projects to population centers, the buying out and decommissioning fossil fuel projects, and limiting industry use of eminent domain to seize property needed for energy projects.

Fossil fuel projects would be further curtailed at the federal agencies, where Inslee would direct regulators to evaluate “lifecycle climate pollution and climate change impacts” associated with any proposed fossil fuel projects. Democrats on FERC are already pushing to consider climate change more in their approval process for natural gas pipelines and export facilities, and the addition of more like-minded regulators could stall or halt those projects.

Inslee also pledged to work with Congress to design an “outright ban” on fracking.

Why now?

Scientists say world economies must decarbonize quickly over the next decade to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, and the issue now ranks near the top of those concerning Democratic primary voters.

Inslee has also made climate change his signature campaign issue, arguing that he turned Washington state into a model for the country on green energy.

The proposal’s release also comes days before the first round of Democratic presidential debates, scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday this week. Inslee, who consistently polls in single digits, has pushed for a debate singularly focused on climate change, and is likely to bring the issue up during his appearance on the debate stage Wednesday.

Article originally published on POLITICO Magazine