Good Govermont

(3) Comm'r Johnson also said that no one from either advocacy groups or #VTLeg has approached him about revisiting the wind turbine noise limits which have helped curtail wind as a source of in-state gen, at a time when new power sources are critical.

(2) DPS Commis'r Johnson acknowledged that as Hydro Quebec sends more power to NYC starting next yr, VT might see increased costs over time due to competition. Scott suggested turning this on its head and looking to neighboring Canadian provinces for more power.

A few things I found notable at today's weekly press conference with Gov. Scott: (1) In response to letter from @theclf.bsky.social, @acluvermont.bsky.social, etc, Scott doubled down on claiming legal authority to make the direct regulatory changes contained in a recent executive order.

. @acluvermont.bsky.social, @theclf.bsky.social, VNRC & others issued a public letter yesterday criticizing what they call Gov. Scott's "illegal overreach" in recent executive order on housing. vnrc.org/vermont-base...

Citing Slow Pace of Housing Construction, Vermont Governor Rolls Back Efficiency Standards for New Buildings New buildings in Vermont will no longer need to comply with the latest building energy standards, adopted last year.

What led to the decision to roll back #Vermont building energy standards, and what didn't Gov. Scott mention in the executive order? Read on to find out. goodgovermont.substack.com/p/citing-slo...

Little Rays of Hope Two pieces of good news for electric vehicle charging

Two pieces of encouraging news re: EV chargers: goodgovermont.substack.com/p/little-ray...

Disagreements Between State Officials Undermined EV Funds Lawsuit The Scott administration offered no help to the attorney general's effort to unfreeze nearly $17 million federal funding for vehicle chargers.

Kudos to Kevin @sevendaysvt.bsky.social for getting the inside scoop on why Vermont did not get a portion of its federal funds for fast EV chargers unfrozen--but 14 other states did. www.sevendaysvt.com/news/disagre...

Wait...Do We Have Enough EV Chargers? Revisiting a surprising question raised by Gov. Scott's decision not to enforce Electric Vehicle supply mandates in Vermont, and finding an equally surprising answer.

The sunset this Sept. for fed'l #EV tax credits in Republicans' budget bill might actually drive a short term spike in sales before a steep drop. Might need to update this piece about chargers from last week re: whether #VT does and will have enough public charging. open.substack.com/pub/goodgove...

Vermont’s Governor Delays Electric Car Mandates, Part of State’s Climate Plan - Inside Climate News In an executive order, Gov. Phil Scott paused enforcement of EV supply mandates. The stated reasons defy the administration’s prior messaging about zero-emission vehicle goals.

A week before Congress voted to repeal the EPA #Waiver for California's most recent clean cars and trucks rules, Vermont's Governor announced a pause in enforcement of the #EV mandates in those rules. I unpacked this in @insideclimatenews.org

insideclimatenews.org/news/2305202...

Facing lawsuit, USDA says it will restore climate change-related webpages The U.S. Department of Agriculture has agreed to restore webpages related to climate change after it was sued earlier this year over the deletions.

.@nofanewyork.bsky.social and @nrdc.org lawsuit successful in compelling USDA to restore info on climate-smart practices to website. apnews.com/article/usda...

Gov. Phil Scott halts electric vehicle mandate for Vermont Republican Gov. Phil Scott has postponed a rule that would have required 35% of all vehicles delivered to Vermont car dealers to be zero emission, starting in model year 2026.

“I continue to believe we should be incentivizing Vermonters to transition to cleaner energy options like electric vehicles,” Gov. Phil Scott said in a written statement. “However, we have to be realistic about a pace that’s achievable."

Legislature Trims Public Transit Funds at Uncertain Moment Vermont’s transportation budget for 2025-26 nears the finish line, making modest cuts to public transit funding and letting popular EV incentive programs lapse. Federal threats also loom.

#PublicTransit in #VT continues to feel the squeeze. My deep dive on the proposed #transportation budget nearing the finish line in the state legislature. open.substack.com/pub/goodgove...

Maryland’s Climate Ambitions in Question After Turbulent Legislative Session - Inside Climate News Amid budgetary and political pressure, Maryland’s latest legislative session delivered some moderate wins while weakening or delaying key mandates.

Some similarities to #VTPoli around #climatechange over in Maryland. insideclimatenews.org/news/2604202...

Trump’s War on Measurement Means Losing Data on Drug Use, Maternal Mortality, Climate Change and More By slashing teams that gather critical data, the administration has left the federal government with no way of understanding if policies are working — and created a black hole of information whose con...

Important piece in @propublica.org today on impacts of fed'l gov stopping its measurement of key health, envtl indicators www.propublica.org/article/trum...

An important resource:

Vermont Might Change How It Accounts for Climate-Damaging Emissions. Here’s What’s at Stake - Inside Climate News The governor’s proposal to include forests and farms in the state greenhouse gas inventory holds both promise and peril, say advocates and researchers.

Great story! Another interesting wrinkle to the question of whether the state should try to account for these stores of #forestcarbon in its official GHG inventory. insideclimatenews.org/news/3103202...

Vermont Might Change How It Accounts for Climate-Damaging Emissions. Here’s What’s at Stake - Inside Climate News The governor’s proposal to include forests and farms in the state greenhouse gas inventory holds both promise and peril, say advocates and researchers.

Vermont’s governor has proposed changing how the state counts greenhouse gas emissions to include carbon sequestration by forests and farms. The proposal has raised serious questions because it could decelerate Vermont’s transition off fossil fuels.

There is also substantial uncertainty and dispute about how to account for #biomass emissions and sales of #carbonoffsets. On the flip side, the plan could force official state rule-making on both questions, where it has so far been lacking.

That's the second key point is just how uncertain calculations of carbon fluxes are in agriculture, forests, and other forms of land-use, compared to the sectors currently measured in the inventory.

The proposed #netzero by 2035 target represents a slowdown in #decarbonization compared to present legally binding gross emissions targets. In the near term, data suggest it's a slowdown of about 5 years--but there's substantial uncertainty.

Vermont Might Change How It Accounts for Climate-Damaging Emissions. Here’s What’s at Stake - Inside Climate News The governor’s proposal to include forests and farms in the state greenhouse gas inventory holds both promise and peril, say advocates and researchers.

Out today: My latest piece for @insideclimatenews.org looks at the proposal currently before the #VT legislature to change how the state tracks greenhouse gas emissions. insideclimatenews.org/news/3103202...

Scott's plan to repeal emissions mandates draws scorn from advocates Republican Gov. Phil Scott wants to repeal Vermont's emissions reduction mandates, but some Democratic lawmakers worry his plan would set back the state's climate action plan.

Gov. Phil Scott presented the Legislature with a new “climate action” proposal that would, according to environmental advocates and many Democratic lawmakers, functionally dismantle Vermont’s landmark emissions reduction law.

Vermont lawmakers consider major changes to the state’s rural bus systems - VTDigger A plan being considered in the Statehouse would see most Green Mountain Transit service outside of Chittenden County taken up by other service providers. In one case, though, the union representing th...

A plan being considered in the Statehouse would see most Green Mountain Transit service outside of Chittenden County taken up by other service providers. In one case, though, the union representing the agency’s bus drivers has concerns.

I'll do a deeper dive on these proposals as well as bills put forward by #Dems in legisl. in coming week.

Here's a link to the bill (H. 289): legislature.vermont.gov/bill/status/...

The bill I'm told represents Gov. Scott's #VT #climate policy dropped today. Here are the highlights:
- Change GHG emissions reduction requirements to goals
- Change GHG accounting to include sinks + create new net zero by 2035 goal
- Allow for more nuclear and out of state elec. gen w/in RES.

Vermont's clean heat policy faces political roadblocks A policy aimed at cutting Vermont's reliance on fossil fuel heating has stalled after election losses weakened Democratic support, leaving its future uncertain.Nathaniel Eisen reports for Inside Clima...

Vermont's clean heat policy faces political roadblocks - The Daily Climate www.dailyclimate.org/vermont-s-cl...

The proposed #cleanheatstandard in #Vermont is in peril. Why? And what does it say about the future of climate ambition in #VtPoli? Read my piece for @insideclimatenews.org to find out. insideclimatenews.org/news/0202202...

GMT Likely to Shed Rural Transit; Dedicated Funding Unlikely this Session Two key developments for public transit at the Legislature

I know, I know, the big story in #VtPoli today is the budget address. But I've just finished my wrap up of two key developments in #transit from the first weeks of the biennium and wanted to share.

2025 Legislative Preview Stormwater Rules? Clean Heat Standard? Permit Appeals? Elected officials share their priorities for and thoughts on the upcoming Vermont legislative session.

Adding this to the many great previews of the #VTLeg session that kicked off today--as usual, my focus is on environmental and land-use law in #Vermont (and obscure music references).