On Tuesday President Donald Trump issued an executive order that targets state and local climate change policies — singling out California’s key cap-and-trade program in the process, reports CalMatters’ Alejandro Lazo.
Trump’s order directs the U.S. Attorney General to review and identify state and local acts that may be unconstitutional or preempted by federal law. The attorney general has 60 days to report back to Trump with findings and recommendations for action.
In addition to New York and Vermont, the order calls out California for “enacting burdensome and ideologically motivated ‘climate change’ or energy policies that threaten American energy dominance and our economic and national security.” Namely, the state’s program that aims to curb greenhouse gas emissions by allowing companies to buy and sell emissions credits.
The order: “California … punishes carbon use by adopting impossible caps on the amount of carbon businesses may use, all but forcing businesses to pay large sums to ‘trade’ carbon credits to meet California’s radical requirements.”
Some legal experts, however, cast doubt over Trump’s claims that states are overreaching their authority or that their policies are unconstitutional.
Californians’ power bills are lower than usual this month thanks to a twice-per-year climate credit funded by cap and trade. The amount of the credit depends on the utility, but most people will get a credit between $56 and $81.38.