What ever happened to the Colorado state resolution on carbon pricing?

By Jim Hooton, CCL Co-State Coordinator

Attentive readers of this newsletter will recall that plans were made at the beginning of the legislative session in January 2022 to introduce a resolution in the State Legislature supporting federal Carbon Fee and Dividend legislation. The goal of the resolution is to demonstrate grassroots support for carbon pricing as a way to further demonstrate political support to Colorado’s Congressional delegation. Colorado CCL lined up two sponsors, State Reps Edie Hooton and Judy Amabile. A resolution was drafted and lobbying of state legislators across the state got underway.

Well, as poet Robert Burns said, “The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” Our resolution sponsors ran into a distinct lack of support from the leadership of State House Speaker Alec Garnett and Majority Leader Daneya Esgar. As a result, the resolution could not even be introduced, let alone debated and voted upon. While we did not receive any specific feedback from leadership about their concerns, our own conjecture is that election year considerations and high gas prices were paramount.

As we look forward, neither CCL nor our supporters are ready to give up. Due to Colorado’s term limits, the legislature will be electing new leaders after the November 2022 elections. House leaders are elected by the legislators themselves once the election results are final. Inside reports indicate that a few leadership candidates are starting to quietly emerge among the more senior members of the legislature. CCL plans to try to meet with a couple of these legislators over the summer to gauge support for introduction of the carbon pricing resolution. Assuming we get an indication of support from the potential leadership, we will then begin a statewide campaign to gain support for the resolution among all 100 state legislators. Each of CCL’s 14 Colorado chapters will be engaged in that outreach. Our goal is to re-introduce a version of the state resolution when the legislature reconvenes in January 2023.

Thanks to those who contacted their state legislators already!

Take Action:

If you would like to help with any of this effort please talk with your CCL Chapter Leader or reach out directly to me.