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Bill to keep state in RGGI stresses auction proceeds returned to ratepayers
Summary
Sponsors said House Bill 1738 updates program parameters to remain in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and continues auction proceeds that the committee said returned roughly $65–68 million to ratepayers last year; DES officials testified the state would forgo larger revenues if it exited the program.
Representative Michael Bose introduced House Bill 1738, a technical update to the state's participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) intended to preserve ratepayer benefits and keep the state inside the auction program through a short extension. Bose said the state received "something like $68 million in auction proceeds, 65 million of which was rebated back to ratepayers," and characterized the bill as an update to program parameters that mostly preserves the existing benefit stream.
Department of Environmental Services officials testified in support and framed the change as a housekeeping measure to keep the state in RGGI through 2030 while allowing for a later program review. Bob Scott of DES told the committee that if the state left RGGI it would forgo considerably larger revenues in auction proceeds: "the trajectory we're on right now ... we'd be forgoing closer to hundred million of revenue for our ratepayers," he said, urging continued participation.
Witnesses explained the bill's technical scope and said it intentionally structures parameter updates so the state continues to receive auction proceeds and distribute benefits to ratepayers. Committee members asked no substantive technical questions during the DES presentation and the hearing proceeded with the department available to answer any follow‑up queries.
The committee concluded the hearing after DES testimony and indicated it would hold the bill for further internal consideration; no final floor vote on passage appears in the provided transcript.
