This week, Committees in both the Senate and Assembly voted on the Governor’s proposed 2016-17 expenditures from the State’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, which draws from Cap-and-Trade proceeds according to Assembly Bill 32. The Governor’s proposed expenditure plan includes important funding for rural counties such as $150 million to CAL FIRE for forest health, restoration, and tree mortality mitigation projects, $100 million to CalRecycle for waste diversion programs, and $40 million for wood stove replacement.
While the Assembly Budget Subcommittee 3 on Resources and Transportation voted to largely accept the Governor’s Cap-and-Trade proposal, including the funds most beneficial to many rural counties, the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee approved a much different proposal later in the day. The Senate proposal augmented local climate programs benefiting disadvantaged communities as defined by CalEPA by $300 million, which provide nearly no benefit to rural communities, while cutting the CalRecycle proposal in half, diminishing the CAL FIRE proposal to $25 million, and eliminating the wood stove replacement program altogether. Despite much testimony opposing the proposal, the Senate ultimately approved the plan, possibly as a bargaining chip for other proposals such as transportation. Assuming the full Assembly Committee on Budget approves the Subcommittee 3 recommendations, the proposals will then go to Budget Conference Committee for further discussion before final budget votes in June.
RCRC has supported the Governor’s Cap and Trade expenditure plan since it first appeared in the Governor’s January budget proposal for 2016-17.