The House Appropriations Committee held a hearing today on a carbon tax bill proposed by Representative Larry Springer. This cap and trade bill would be a substitute to SHB 1314, which was passed out by the House Committee on Environment on February 12. We described the latter bill in our special report Carbon Taxation.

Compared SHB 1314, Rep. Springer’s proposal make significant changes in way that proceeds from auctioning off  greenhouse gas emissions allowances would be spent. Among the larger differences, under the Springer proposal:

• No funds are provided for transportation;
• The share of funds dedicated to education is increased from 40 percent to 50 percent;
• Fuel suppliers and refineries would receive rebates for 75 percent of allowance costs, provided that rebates are passed on their customers through lower prices
• Qualifying energy intensive trade-exposed businesses would receive rebates of all program costs through the year 2020 and 80 percent of program costs from 2021 to 2026;
• A working forestland and mills program would provide $10,000 B&O tax credit for each new job created by a sawmill, by a planing mill or by an eligible forestland owner.
• A program to provide recreation easements in working forests would receive $30 million per year;
• A cumulative impacts task force would make would make grants totally $70 million per year to communities adversely affected by environmental hazard exposures, and social and economic disparities;
• Log and agricultural product transporters receive a B&O tax credit;
• The Department of Natural Resources would receive funds for emergency fire suppression, forest hazard reduction, and forest riparian easements.

A detailed description of the bill prepared by Appropriations Committee staff is available here. Below is a link to TVW’s coverage of the hearing:

I have started to review the fiscal note to the bill. I may have comments on it tomorrow.