ALBANY, N.Y. (NEXSTAR) — Days after regulators proposed drastically tightening limits on emissions over the next decade, state officials are meeting to discuss investing billions raised from charging power plants for their pollution. The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority is hosting the public meeting in Albany on Thursday to review the Operating Plan for the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, or RGGI.
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The RGGI requires power companies in New York and neighboring states to buy an allowance for every ton of carbon dioxide they emit, forcing them to pay up if they won’t clean up. The Operating Plan dictates how the state will spend the current proceeds from RGGI—which essentially auctions allowances for emissions—through March 2029.
The updated spending plan puts RGGI funds in specific programs, including solar incentives through NY-Sun and grants for schools that need upgrades in disadvantaged communities. It also earmarks funding for research into technology like hydrogen hubs and carbon sequestration.
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RGGI has raised over $3 billion in about 15 years, which the state applies to efficiency upgrades, renewable projects, and aid for residential power bills. And a 2017 analysis found the program created $5.7 billion in public health benefits between 2009 and 2014 by reducing soot and smog that cause heart attacks and respiratory illness.
The Department of Environmental Conservation tallied New York’s total emissions at about 354 million metric tons in 2023, a drop of almost 14% compared to 1990. While the energy sector cut emissions by over 50% since 2005—mostly driven by RGGI—that overall drop still trails the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act’s legal requirement of 40% reduction by 2030.
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DEC announced a plan last week to lower the regional emissions cap to about 69.8 million tons of CO2 in 2027. The limit would drop by about 10% every year through 2033, achieving a roughly 60-million-ton reduction in emissions by 2037, an 89% drop compared to today…