Washington

A Washington initiative will let voters decide whether to repeal the state's Climate Commitment Act, which has brought in $1.8 billion so far

Published

2 years ago

February 29, 2024

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A Washington initiative will let voters decide whether to repeal the state's Climate Commitment Act, which has brought in .8 billion so far

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Washington has lofty climate goals. And unlike many other states, there’s a clear path to achieve them.

At least for now, that is.

This year’s November ballot will include six statewide initiatives, one of which intends to prevent the state from employing its main plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by half by 2030 and ultimately reach net-zero emissions by 2050.

In 2021, lawmakers passed the Climate Commitment Act (CCA), which established a cap and invest program. The program places an annual cap on emissions and requires large polluters in the state to purchase “allowances” (each representing 1 metric ton of emissions) at state auctions equal to their own emissions. The cap will get smaller each year, and if businesses don’t get enough of the dwindling number of allowances, they’ll need to reduce their emissions another way.

Meanwhile, the money from the auctions will be invested in climate projects, like improving clean transportation options, increasing climate resilience, and addressing issues of environmental justice and health inequity in Washington, according to the state Department of Ecology.

Not everyone in the state supports this program though.

“The CCA created a government market that’s wholly owned by the government,” says state Rep. Mary Dye, R-Pomeroy, who is the ranking minority member on the House Environment and Energy Committee. “It’s just a bunch of people that are convinced that we ‘have to do something.’”

Many people seem to agree with Dye — more than 460,000 registered Washington voters signed onto Initiative 2117, which proposes prohibiting all state agencies “from implementing any type of carbon tax credit trading, also known as ‘cap and trade’ or ‘cap and tax’ scheme, including the Climate Commitment Act.”

Dye says she supports Initiative 2117 because she believes the cap and invest program needlessly intertwines the state’s economy with its energy sector.

“We’ve ended up with public policies that cripple the future economy because we’ve shifted the wealth creating components of our economy over to our government,” she says.

But the two have always been linked, says Lennon Bronsema, vice president of campaigns at Washington Conservation Action, a nonprofit that advocates for environmental progress and justice in Washington.

“It’s always been connected — we’ve allowed the most polluting industries to transfer the cost onto the people,” he explains. “The CCA puts the cost onto those who are actually doing the polluting.”

So far, the state has brought in more than $1.8 billion from the auctions, and more than 100 projects statewide have received some slice of that revenue. Much of that money so far is being dispersed through the state Department of Transportation.

In Spokane County, most of those funds have gone to public transit planning and operations. The county received about $66,000 to help develop a plan to transition to a zero emission fleet, and a $2.5 million transit support grant.

The state also has plans for the next few years. Notably, $25 million is slated to improve air quality and monitoring in communities that are overburdened and highly impacted by air pollution. Spokane is one of the 16 places in the state that will get that air quality investment.

State lawmakers refused to act on Initiative 2117 and adopt it into state law this session, so now it’ll be up to the state’s voters to decide. If it’s approved in November, it would reduce the state’s ability to reach its emission reduction goals.

Because of this, Bronsema thinks that voters are going to reject the initiative.

“[The CCA] really matters to people’s health — you would see people truly harmed,” Bronsema says. “The things that we’re doing to mitigate that harm would be taken away from us.” ♦

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Washington

Washington Spirit players Croix Bethune, Kate Wiesner called up year’s final USWNT matches – WTOP News

Published

17 hours ago

November 19, 2025

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Washington Spirit players Croix Bethune, Kate Wiesner called up year’s final USWNT matches – WTOP News

Washington Spirit midfielder Croix Bethune and defender Kate Wiesner have been called up to the U.S. Women’s National Team for the side’s upcoming friendlies.

Defender Naomi Girma was named to the United States roster on Wednesday for a pair of upcoming matches against Italy after returning from a calf injury.

Girma had been sidelined since the start of the season with Chelsea but recently returned to the starting lineup. She has not played for the U.S. national team since a 3-0 victory over Canada on July 2.

The United States will play Italy for its final two matches of the year on Nov. 28 at Inter&Co Stadium in Orlando and on Dec. 1 at Chase Stadium in Ft. Lauderdale.

U.S. coach Emma Hayes named 26 players to the camp roster and 23 players will be available for each match.

Forward Trinity Rodman was left off the roster as she continues to recover from a knee injury. She appeared as a late substitute in the Washington Spirit’s 2-0 semifinal victory over the Portland Thorns this weekend and nearly scored in the sixth minute of stoppage time but her shot went just wide.

The Spirit play Gotham FC on Saturday in the National Women’s Soccer League championship game at PayPal Park in San Jose, California.

Goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce was also left off the U.S. roster while she recovers from a fractured eye socket sustained during a game with Manchester United last week.

“It’s been an exciting and important year for our group, and we’ve accomplished a lot of goals, expanded the player pool and made strides in our game model, so this camp will be an extension of that, but it will also set the groundwork for 2026, which will be our World Cup qualifying year,” Hayes said in a statement released by the team. “Games against top European teams are so valuable as they give us an honest assessment of where we are in our growth as a team, so I know our players with embrace that challenge.”

Two players have been called up to the national team for the first time: Bay FC goalkeeper Jordan Silkowitz and Chicago Stars forward Jameese Joseph. Washington Spirit defender Kate Wiesner earned a second call-up after being named as a training player for a camp last year.

The roster with club affiliation:

Goalkeepers: Claudia Dickey (Seattle Reign), Mandy McGlynn (Utah Royals), Silkowitz (Bay FC).

Defenders: Jordyn Bugg (Seattle Reign), Emily Fox (Arsenal), Girma (Chelsea), Avery Patterson (Houston Dash), Lilly Reale (Gotham), Izzy Rodriguez (Kansas City Current), Emily Sams (Orlando Pride), Emily Sonnett (Gotham), Kennedy Wesley (San Diego Wave), Kate Wiesner (Washington Spirit).

Midfielders: Croix Bethune (Washington Spirit), Sam Coffey (Portland Thorns), Lindsey Heaps (Lyon), Jaelin Howell (Gotham), Claire Hutton (Kansas City Current), Rose Lavelle (Gotham), Lily Yohannes (Lyon).

Forwards: Joseph (Chicago Stars), Catarina Macario (Chelsea), Olivia Moultrie (Portland Thorns), Emma Sears (Racing Louisville), Jaedyn Shaw (Gotham FC), Alyssa Thompson (Chelsea).

___

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Washington

Washington city leaders, business owners frustrated over trash-filled parking lot

Published

1 day ago

November 18, 2025

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Washington city leaders, business owners frustrated over trash-filled parking lot

City leaders in Washington say one of the busiest corners of their town has turned into an eyesore: a parking lot overflowing with trash, furniture, and old tires directly across from Washington High School.

Now, frustration is growing as the city waits for a court hearing before it can force a cleanup. Business owners say enough is enough.

“We’re doing everything we can legally do. We just can’t go on the property and start moving stuff,” said Washington Mayor JoJo Burgess.

Burgess says the spot at 308 Jefferson Avenue has turned into a junkyard that they can’t legally touch.

“I hate it whenever I hear people say, ‘Why are you letting him be there?’ We’re not letting him be there. If we were letting him be there, he would have a permit that says, ‘OK, you can be there.’ He doesn’t have that.”

The business, Hauling and That, moved in this summer. But by August, the mess had gotten out of control, and so had the complaints.

The city filed 10 citations against the property owner and the business owner, ranging from nuisance vehicles to unapproved solid-waste collection. Those citations also come with a daily fine.

“He’s calling me, telling me, ‘Will you work with me?’ No, I’m not going to work with you. I need you to get into compliance with what we say the rules are here in the city,” Mayor Burgess said.

“It’s definitely not a good look. We take a lot of pride in our shop, and having that across the street is definitely not good,” said Johnny Interval, owner of Barbiere. “It’s right across the street from the school. It’s just a bad look for the city in general, you know what I mean?”

The mayor says the mess stems from the owner never securing the proper permits or zoning approvals, something the city says it warned him about early on.

As the community watched the trash pile grow, the safety concern also grew.

“I’d hate for a kid to go get into that mess and find something and get hurt,” Mayor Burgess said. “That’s why we issued the citations. That’s why we’re going in front of the magistrate.”

A hearing is set for Nov. 25.

If the judge rules against the business owner, the fines could escalate quickly, and the city could eventually be permitted to step in and remove the debris.

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Washington

RFK Jr. draws crowd and protests at GWU event

Published

2 days ago

November 18, 2025

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RFK Jr. draws crowd and protests at GWU event

WASHINGTON (7News) — A large and vocal crowd gathered at the Lisner Auditorium at George Washington University for a Turning Point USA discussion that featured Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr.

This marked the group’s first high-profile event in Washington, D.C., since co-founder Charlie Kirk was shot and killed during an appearance in Utah.

Kennedy addressed topics ranging from vaccines to allergies.

While the packed auditorium was filled with cheering, the event also attracted protesters outside who were upset with Kennedy’s stances on healthcare.

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