The Climate Commitment Act is a law enacted by the
Washington state legislature
The Washington State Legislature is the state legislature of the State of Washington. It is a bicameral body, composed of the lower Washington House of Representatives, composed of 98 representatives, and the upper Washington State Senate, w ...
and signed by
Governor
A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
Jay Inslee
Jay Robert Inslee ( ; born February 9, 1951) is an American politician and lawyer who served from 2013 to 2025 as the 23rd governor of Washington. A member of the Democratic Party, he served from 1993 to 1995 and again from 1999 to 2012 as a ...
in 2021.
Cap and invest program
The Climate Commitment Act is implemented through the
Cap-and-Invest program which was launched in 2023.
Initiative 2117
In the 2024 general election, ballot initiative 2117 which sought to repeal the Climate Commitment Act was placed on the ballot. A poll in May 2024 of 403 registered voters showed 41% support repealing while 31% oppose with a +/- 5% margin of error. Over $8.5 million and $5 million were raised in support and opposition of the initiative, respectively.
Initiative 2117 is part of a group of ballot initiatives lead by conservative leaders, including businessman Brian Heywood, who criticized the CCA for targeting gasoline which has
inelastic demand, meaning that people still have to buy it even when the price goes up. He was quoted as describing the policy as "like
Marie Antoinette
Marie Antoinette (; ; Maria Antonia Josefa Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last List of French royal consorts, queen of France before the French Revolution and the establishment of the French First Republic. She was the ...
— let them drive
Teslas." The coalition defending the CCA, No on 2117 includes
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company, technology conglomerate headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975, the company became influential in the History of personal computers#The ear ...
,
Amazon
Amazon most often refers to:
* Amazon River, in South America
* Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin
* Amazon (company), an American multinational technology company
* Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek myth ...
, and oil company
BP.
At the 2024 meeting of the North American Carbon World, Director of the Washington State Department of Ecology, Laura Watson, suggested that the result of the reason for the sudden drop in settlement price for carbon allowances in the first auction of the year was a result of the initiative getting on the ballot.
Initiative 2117 failed with 61.95% of the 3.8 million total votes being cast against it, leaving the CCA intact.
See also
*
Climate change policy of Washington (state)
The climate change policy of Washington (state), Washington state involves a combination of incentives and penalties intended to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). State legislators and governors have consistently rejected climate change deni ...
References
{{Reflist
Washington (state) statutes
2021 in American law
2021 in Washington (state)
Environmental law in the United States
Climate change law