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State CCAP briefings prompt Spokane board to consider workforce, distributed-energy and housing-related priorities for 2027 legislative agenda
Summary
A state presentation on Washington's Comprehensive Climate Action Plan prompted the board to consider a short list of inter-sectional legislative priorities — workforce development, distributed energy (community solar, microgrids, 'plug-in' solar) and equity-focused funding programs such as Energize — and to coordinate quickly with City Council on potential submissions to the Association of Washington Cities.
Riley Ellison, representing the Washington Climate Partnership and the Washington Department of Ecology, presented the recently released Comprehensive Climate Action Plan (CCAP) and urged local officials to use the plan as a menu of options for state and local action.
The CCAP compiles sector-specific measures and modeling and offers tools the state will make available to local governments, Riley said. "The main product of this is the Comprehensive Climate Action Plan," he told the board, noting the plan's focus on meeting statutory greenhouse-gas limits while advancing equity and community benefits.
Board members discussed which priorities to recommend to the city council for the upcoming biennial legislative cycle. Councilmember Klitsky joined the meeting online and encouraged the board to submit focused proposals quickly, noting that some city and state groups have accelerated timelines for developing their legislative agendas this year.
Ideas raised included:
- Distributed energy resources (microgrids, community solar and a push to allow so-called —plug-in solar— at residential scale), which board members said could have local economic and resilience benefits.
- Workforce development tied to climate implementation (training and job pathways for residents, including programs that combine social benefits with climate work, such as tree-care and peer outreach efforts).
- Equitable access to weatherization and electrification funding (the board discussed —Energize—-style coalitions using Climate Commitment Act funds to support heat pumps/weatherization for lower-income households).
Members stressed the utility of keeping the submitted list short and focused so the council and AWC (Association of Washington Cities) could champion items that have existing coalitions or clear implementation paths. Staff offered to research existing statewide efforts and possible partners to "piggyback" on rather than building new standalone bills.
