Republicans and Democrats in the Legislature generally agree that Washington’s transportation system is short on funding, and the shortfall is largely due to inflation driving the costs of projects beyond what was budgeted.
That prompted a longtime statehouse reporter to ask, recently: How can Republicans talk about providing more funding for transportation while also favoring Initiative 2117, which would repeal the cap-and-trade law adopted in 2021 and take away money earmarked for transportation?
Welcome to one of the arguments that will be made against Initiative 2117. Here’s why no one should buy it.
Through cap-and-trade — officially, the Climate Commitment Act — state government made “carbon allowances” a commodity, created a market for people to buy and sell that commodity, then gave itself the corner on that market. It’s a neat trick that has already raked in $1.8 billion while doing little if anything to make a measurable difference in air quality.
Of those proceeds, the Climate Commitment Act (CCA)appropriates $360 million per year toward transportation. That’s a lot of money, but not in the context of the $13.4 billion transportation budget adopted in 2023. It’s also only 20% of the CCA-generated revenue.