Falmouth selectmen support proposed green bill

By Jessica Hill 

Posted Jan 15, 2020

FALMOUTH — The Board of Selectmen voted unanimously Monday to support a bill that seeks to promote green infrastructure while also reducing carbon emissions.

“This is a very difficult challenge for society, to figure out how to address the greenhouse effect and know what’s causing it,” Selectman Sam Patterson said. “There’s essentially a blanket that is preventing the Earth from cooling at the same rate that it has in the past.”

Former state Rep. Jennifer Benson, D-Lunenburg, filed the bill a year ago. Rep. William Driscoll, D-Milton, is the bill’s current sponsor.

If it becomes law, the bill would charge a fee to fossil fuel companies that contribute to greenhouse gas pollution. The funds collected would go to support green infrastructure projects and provide rebates to households.

The law will charge companies $20 per ton of carbon dioxide emitted in the first year. The fee would increase by $5 every year after until the amount reaches $40 per ton, the bill states.

According to the bill, 30% of the profits made will go into a Green Infrastructure Fund, which will “support investments in clean energy, clean transportation, and resiliency to the local impacts of climate change” through two year plans.

Investments include those in public transit and electric vehicles, as well as renewable energy investments in housing, municipal buildings and public school buildings. The fund will also help renters access renewable energy benefits, according to the bill.

There could be some increases associated with the bill. Gasoline prices would increase by about 16 cents per gallon under the new law, according to Climate Action Now.

Resident Marc Finneran was concerned the bill would cost each household in Falmouth between $790 and $1,800 a year. [IT IS UNCLEAR WHERE THAT FIGURE ORIGINATED.]

“Many have a hard enough time affording to live on Cape Cod,” Finneran said. “How much is $1,500 a year per family going to affect people trying to live here affordably? I think it’s too much.”

But at least 40% of money from the Green Infrastructure Fund would go to programs and projects that would help low-income households, according to the bill.

Selectman Doug Brown also said it appears the bill would favor lower income people through rebates.

The remaining 70% of the money accumulated from fees assessed to companies would be divided between a household fund (75%) and an employers fund (25%).

Households with the lowest incomes would receive 25% of the money from the household fund. The remaining percentage would be distributed to other households through gas and home heating rebates.

Rural households would receive larger rebates than nonrural households, according to the bill.

A percentage of funds collected from the sale of heating fuels to households will go toward the state’s Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which provides eligible households with help paying winter heating bills.

Meanwhile, $1 million from the employers fund would go each year toward the Rapid Response Set-Aside fund to help workers experiencing displacement, loss of tax revenue and other economic losses as a result of the shrinking of fossil fuel industries.

Resident Michael Heylin suggested that the selectmen hear more from the public before voting to support the bill.

“I see no harm in waiting to get more public input,” he said.

But the board voted in support of the bill Monday.

“I think we have to start somewhere, and by signing onto this letter and showing our support for this concept as it’s put together here, that will start the ball rolling in a positive way,” Selectman Susan Moran said.

Selectmen Chairwoman Megan English-Braga said the bill will continue to be discussed and revised before going before the state Senate for a vote.

“I’d rather see us start the process and perfect it as we go along than just sort of continuously wait in an aspirational stance to hopefully find some perfect bill,” she said. “I don’t think there will ever be a perfect program.”

The proposed bill has been referred to the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy. State representatives sponsoring the bill could not be reached for comment.