Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Climate Commitment Act topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
City administrator urges caution on aggressive Climate Commitment Act measures as auction prices rise
Summary
City Administrator Chris Searcy told the council the CCA’s auction prices and pending market linkage create uncertainty for natural‑gas utilities; he recommended monitoring developments rather than immediate local action, and council recessed to an executive session on bid auction strategy.
City Administrator Chris Searcy presented a detailed briefing on the Climate Commitment Act (CCA) and potential compliance costs for natural‑gas utilities, telling councilors the city should watch developments before pursuing aggressive local policy changes.
Searcy compared Washington’s recent auction settlement prices to California’s, saying, “The last 1 was about $65 a metric ton,” while California’s recent auctions were under $30 per ton. He showed modeling and charts that illustrated a range of possible futures — from a lower‑price path consistent with California’s experience to a higher‑price trajectory driven by Washington’s program design — and explained that costs for compliance could grow exponentially over time in some scenarios.
Searcy noted the state’s market linkage decisions and Ecology rule‑making are still unfolding and that Washington’s reporting on emissions lags the CCA period, so local staff cannot yet calculate definitive customer impacts. “So there’s a lot of things going on that I think we just need to kinda sit back and and observe and and see how these things play out,” he told the council.
He identified two practical near‑term implications: (1) the city’s immediate exposure appears limited in 2026 (small per‑customer CCA charges on existing connections) but could increase substantially in later compliance periods if allowance prices remain high; and (2) staffing and consultant costs to process annexations and development requests remain material and applicants have offered to reimburse review costs in some cases. Searcy said staff is also looking at how the city could position voluntary incentives for customers who choose heat pumps or other gas‑reduction measures.
After the presentation, the mayor recessed the meeting to an executive session to discuss CCA auction bid strategy under the cited RCW; the council returned and adjourned after the closed session.
Why it matters: The CCA’s allowance prices and the potential for Washington to link with other markets will affect future compliance costs for utilities and may influence local rate pressures and city procurement or bidding strategy.
What’s next: Staff recommended monitoring state-level decisions on market linkage and Ecology rulemaking and returning with any recommended policy or program options once state actions clarify allowance availability and price trends.
