Climate & Clean Energy 2022 Priority Bills.xlsx

	A	B	C	D	E	F	G	H
1	Climate & Clean Energy Working Group 2022 Priority Bills
2	Bill#	Status	Focus or Title	Patron	Talking points/CTA	Helpful resources	Committee Assignment & HoDSpeak	Short Summary
3	PRIORITY BILLS WE SUPPORT	Action items : Link to all CCE CTAs				VCEA-colorfulflyer_AEE
4	HB 71	Tabled	Campaign Finance - Prohibition on Utilities	Ware & Hudson	This bill would ban campaign contributions from regulated utilities like Dominion Energy. Dominion and other corporate monopolies abuse our lax rules to exploit our political system, drowning out the voices of Virginia families and small businesses. For years, Dominion has contributed staggering amounts of campaign cash to candidates of both parties and our laws are riddled with loopholes that thwart SCC authority to ensure we have fair rates. As demonstrated by the 2021 Dominion rate case, these laws permitted Dominion to overcharge Virginians by over $1 billion. As a result, Virginians pay the 8th highest electricity bills in the country. We ask you to ban campaign contributions by Dominion Energy and other regulated monopolies which will lower energy bills and restore the public trust in our institutions.	CV_TalkingPoints_SB45/HB71	Privileges & Elections Home ; HoDSPEAK_written	Prohibits public utilities (including Dominion & APCo) from contributing to candidates
5	HB471	Tabled	Solar Ready Roofs	Subramanyan (House version of Favola's SB290)	Please support HB471. This bill would require certain large public buildings to include solar-ready roofs in new construction or significant renovations, saving energy and taxpayer money when solar is added. Similarly, new construction or significant renovations of public school buildings and facilities must be built to net-zero energy standards. Schools that produce as much energy as they consume are healthier for students, leading to fewer student absences and higher academic achievement. They are also good for taxpayers. A study conducted for Fairfax County Public Schools showed that new schools built to net-zero standards recover the added construction cost in just 10 years, while schools renovated to that standard recover the cost in 15 years. Thank you for your consideration.	SC_TalkingPoints_SolarReady		Enhances current law that requires new public buildings to meet high performance standards to save energy and taxpayer dollars by also requiring that new roofs being constructed as "solar-ready." Bill also enhances current law with respect to major rennovations to public buildings by requiring roof construction to be "solar-ready." For public schools, the bill requires them to be designed and built to net-zero standards.
6	HB664	never docketed	Utility cutoffs	Kory			assigned C&Esub1
7	HB1054	Laid on table	Utility cutoffs	Shin
8	HB1288	Sent on by Keam	Ratepayer Protection Act	Hudson & Ware	This bill would restore much needed authority to the State Corporation Commission (SCC) to ensure that energy bills to ratepayers are just and reasonable. Lowering bills is both a kitchen table issue and a clean energy issue. Virginians pay the 8th highest energy bills in the country. Republican well-messaged attacks on both RGGI/Clean Energy and Community Flood Preparedness Act and the Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA) claim to tie the high costs of electricity bills with clean energy mandates and use this to justify gutting or repealing those laws. However, the Dominion Energy rate case this past fall made clear that high bills are a result of the inability of the SCC to effectively regulate this monopoly. In the rate case, for example, the SCC staff and the Attorney General’s office successfully demonstrated that Dominion Energy had overcharged ratepayers between $1 and 1.2 billion in excess profits over a 4-year period. Worse - the SCC lacked authority to order reimbursement and had to rely on a settlement agreement to procure a refund of only $330 million. This is a burden on ratepayers that must be addressed. Show the ratepayers you care about this issue and protect our climate and clean energy legislation in the process.	CV_TalkingPoints_HB1288 'customers are paying more than they should for electricity and this bill can fix the problem. '	Commerce & Energy Subcommittee #1	Restores authority to the SCC to establish more reasonable rates by determining fair profits for utilities by removing minimum profit restrictions. Failure to have this authority has led to unreasonbly high bills to ratepayers and resulted in false messaging by Republicans that energy bills are high because of clean energy legislation rather than because the SCC lacked sufficient authority to properly regulate rates
9	SB45	PBI	Campaign Finance PSCs	Petersen	I urge you to support SB45 which would ban campaign contributions from regulated utilities like Dominion Energy. Dominion and other corporate monopolies abuse our lax rules to exploit our political system, drowning out the voices of Virginia families and small businesses. For years, Dominion has contributed staggering amounts of campaign cash to candidates of both parties and our laws are riddled with loopholes that thwart SCC authority to ensure we have fair rates. As demonstrated by the 2021 Dominion rate case, these laws permitted Dominion to overcharge Virginians by over $1 billion. As a result, Virginians pay the 8th highest electricity bills in the country. We ask you to ban campaign contributions by Dominion Energy and other regulated monopolies which will lower energy bills and restore the public trust in our institutions.	CV_TalkingPoints_SB45/HB71	Privileges & Elections	Prohibits public utilities (Dominion & APCo) from contributing to candidates
10	SB290	Passed Senate (22-Y 19-N)	Solar Ready Roofs	Favola	Please support SB 290. This bill would require certain large public buildings to include solar-ready roofs in new construction or significant renovations, saving energy and taxpayer money when solar is added. Similarly, new construction or significant renovations of public school buildings and facilities must be built to net-zero energy standards. Schools that produce as much energy as they consume are healthier for students, leading to fewer student absences and higher academic achievement. They are also good for taxpayers. A study conducted for Fairfax County Public Schools showed that new schools built to net-zero standards recover the added construction cost in just 10 years, while schools renovated to that standard recover the cost in 15 years. Thank you. Sincerely,	SC_TalkingPoints_SolarReady	General Laws	Enhances current law that requires new public buildings to meet high performance standards to save energy and taxpayer dollars by also requiring that new roofs being constructed as "solar-ready." Bill also enhances current law with respect to major rennovations to public buildings by requiring roof construction to be "solar-ready." For public schools, the bill requires them to be designed and built to net-zero standards.
11	SB575	Passed Senate	EV fleet transition	Mason		SC_TalkingPoints_SB575	General Laws - reported.
12	SB568	PBI	Campaign Finance Reform	Stuart	I urge you to support SB568, which would ban campaign contributions from regulated utilities like Dominion Energy. Dominion and other corporate monopolies abuse our lax rules to exploit our political system, drowning out the voices of Virginia families and small businesses. For years, Dominion has contributed staggering amounts of campaign cash to candidates of both parties and our laws are riddled with loopholes that thwart SCC authority to ensure we have fair rates. As demonstrated by the 2021 Dominion rate case, these laws permitted Dominion to overcharge Virginians by over $1 billion. As a result, Virginians pay the 8th highest electricity bills in the country. We ask you to ban campaign contributions by Dominion Energy and other regulated monopolies which will lower energy bills and restore the public trust in our institutions.	CV_TalkingPoints_SB45/HB71	Privileges & Elections
13		CTA! #RejectWheeler
14	PRIORITY BILLS WE OPPOSE	Status & Action Items
15	HB5	Tabled	Flood Relief Fund	Morefield	Please oppose HB5 which would reallocate monies from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) away from critical efforts to mitigate carbon pollution and protect Virginians from the effects of climate change. By law, these monies are allocated statewide to fund direly needed community flood preparedness projects and to make low-income housing energy efficient.	Wetlands Watch_OpposeHB5	Agriculture	Reallocates some of the monies from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative which, under current law, must be used by localities to address climate change and flood mitigation and to provide weatherization of homes to low income individuals and families, to instead reimburse private property owners (homes and businesses) for flood damage.
16	HB73	passed House (53Y-47N)	VCEA Amend	Ware	Please oppose HB73 which would amend the Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA) to exclude solar, wind, and energy efficiency projects from being deemed “in the public interest.” This bill would make it more difficult for utilities to recover their costs, dampen investment in clean energy companies, and deprive Virginia of clean energy jobs (4,300 in the solar sector alone). HB73 sends a terrible message to the very clean energy businesses Virginia wants to attract and also slows Virginia’s move towards 100% zero-carbon electric sector.	SC_OpposeHB73 SELC_OpposeHB73	Commerce & Energy	Removes provisions that find renewable energy and energy efficiency efforts under the VCEA to be in the public interest. Allows fossil fuel waste heat to be considered renewable energy
17	HB74	Passed House (53Y-47N)	VCEA Amend - Non bypassable charge exemption	Ware	Please oppose HB74 which would amend the Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA) to subsidize the energy costs of large industrial customers known as Energy Intensive Trade Exposed (EITE) industries, and impose the cost of this subsidy on all other customers. Many of America’s largest corporations support the energy transition and have embraced aggressive renewable energy goals for their own operations—ones that often exceed Virginia’s. Their commitment to clean energy, going beyond the provisions of the VCEA, earned them an exemption in the statute from the non-bypassable charges that almost all other customers pay for the development of clean energy. The heavy industrial consumers seeking exemption have made few or no investments to qualify them as clean energy buyers. Yet they want the same exemption from non-bypassable charges. Lowering their energy costs this way, they say, would let them better compete with companies in other states and abroad, especially countries where fewer environmental and climate protections exist and worse, passes these costs on to Virginians. HB74 is bad policy and should be rejected.	1. SC_OpposeHB74 2. SELC_OpposeHB74	Commerce & Energy	Excludes certain compaines (Excludes Energy-Intensive Trade-Exposed Industries) that export products that cause emissions from having to pay the costs of offshore wind development. Exclusion of these industries unfairly shifts more costs onto individuals and families.
18	HB118	reported from subcommittee	VCEA Amend; RGGI Eliminate	Freitas	Please oppose HB118 which would gut nearly every critical provision of the Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA) and radically slow Virginia’s transition into a clean economy. Wind and solar businesses have been flocking to Virginia in the wake of the VCEA’s passage. Siemens Gamesa, the world’s largest offshore wind blade manufacturer, announced plans to open a factory in Portsmouth. And according to the Solar Energy Industries Association, Virginia has surged into the top ranks of states in solar energy, with more than 4,300 jobs in the industry. HB118 would jeopardize all these gains, for no long-term benefit.	1. CCEWG- RGGI 2. SC_OpposeHB118 3. SELC_OpposeHB118	Commerce & Energy	Bill repeals (1) Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative - initiative that would allow Virginia to achieve zero carbon emissions by 250 through auctions of carbon emissions allowances that decrease over time; (2) VCEA requirement that no new fossil fuel plants can be approved unless utility has met energy-savings goals and can demonstrate cost effectiveness; (3) VCEA provisions that classify wind and solar as in the public interest and other VCEA provisiosn.
19	HB202 HB206		Small solar	Webert	Please oppose HB202 and HB 206 which would impose needlessly burdensome conditions on small solar installations.	SC_OpposeHB202	Agriculture HB206-Webert is related	Permit by rule for small solar is narrowed from under 150 MW to under20 MW; 206 requires analysis of impact on natural resources for such projects
20	HB558 (Companion to SB565)	Passed House (58-Y 41-N)	biogas	O'Quinn		VCN_OpposeHB558SB565	Commerce and Energy
21	HB656	laid on table	Coal refuse, tax credits	Wampler	Please oppose HB656 which would use taxpayer dollars to provide tax incentives to use waste coal in electricity generation. Not only does this bill run contrary to the interests of Virginia consumers and taxpayers, it would perpetuate use of an expensive and toxic approach in contrast to the Virginia Clean Economy Act.	AppV_OpposeHB656	Appropriations,Sub ACNR	Tax incentives for using coal refuse to generate electricity (over $37Million through 2027)
22	HB657	Referred Senate C&L	Waste coal	Wampler	Please oppose HB657 which makes a mockery of Virginia’s climate goals and of the very meaning of clean energy by declaring waste coal a renewable resource. It also undermines Virginia’s transition to zero-carbon electricity by exempting the coal-burning Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center in Wise County from the provision of the Virginia Clean Economy Act requiring closure of Dominion Energy’s Virginia coal plants by 2045. Moreover, HB206 runs contrary to the interests of Virginia consumers, since the Wise County coal plant is already uneconomic and would cost ratepayers hundreds of millions of dollars to leave in operation. Finally, it is the wrong solution to Southwest Virginia’s legacy of toxic coal (“GOB”) piles.	SC_OpposeHB657 OpposeCoalBillsSB120HB657		Extends ability to generate electricity from waste coal
23	HB839	Continued 2023	Utility RAC	Wilt			Commerce & Energy (SC #1)	Allows SCC to grant recovery through rates rather than RAC; and addresses recovery of costs for solar, wind or stored energy - THIS IS A BAD BILL - NEED TO FIX THE SUMMARY. RAC IS GOOD, THE REST IS VERY BAD
24	HB892 companion to SB398	Refererred Senate C&L	Undercut RGGI	Kilgore	Alters RGGI program compliance costs for entities with preexisting contracts		Commerce & Energy
25	HB894	Reported	Electricity Generation	Kilgore	This bill would gut significant provisions of the Virginia Clean Economy Act. It forbids the SCC from requiring the closure of the Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center, a coal plant in Wise County that Dominion Energy acknowledges is not economic and would cost customers hundreds of millions to keep open even for one more decade. The most recent data indicate that this plant runs less than 20% of the time, and Dominion projects that number to fall to less than 10 percent if the plant is not completely retired. This bill is bad for the ratepayer and undercuts the Virginia Clean Economy Act’s carbon reduction timetable.		Commerce & Energy (SC #1)
26	HB1204	Engrossed	Electricity Generation; restrictions on Air Pollution Control Board	Kilgore	Please oppose HB1204 which prevents Virginia’s new renewable portfolio standard (RPS) from taking effect until 2025 and permanently removes the special provisions for distributed generation, efffectively quashing many opportunities for solar installations. It also shifts authority from the Air Pollution Control Board to the Dept of Environmental Quality over air pollution permits for “minor” sources of pollution. Together, these provisions severely undermine the VCEA and would put critical decision making squarely in the purview of a politicized executive agency.	SC_OPPOSEHB1204 VCN_OpposeHB1204 ProtectCitizenBoards_OpposeBills
27	HB1257		Prohibits public entities from banning natural gas, slowing transition to clean energy	Kilgore	Please oppose HB1257, which would undermine the VCEA's transition to a clean energy economy. The bill would prohibit public entities from banning natural gas, and otherwise hamper local efforts to create pathways away from fossil fuels.		Commerce & Energy	ALEC model legislation. Org funded by Dark Money, incl. Koch
28	HB1261	Reported	Weakens state citizen environmental boards	Bloxom	Please oppose HB1261 which would revise the appointment procedure for state citizen environmental boards and weakens their authority. This bill stands to undermine implementation of key climate and clean energy priorities, including the VCEA, RGGI and Clean Car Standards. As such, it threatens our transition to a clean energy economy, and the economic, health and environmental benefits anticipated under those laws.	VCN_OpposeHB1261 ProtectCitizenBoards_OpposeBills	Agriculture
29	HB1267	reported.	Repeals Clean Car Standards	Wilt	This bill would effectively repeal the Clean Car standards enacted in 2022. The Clean Car Standards legislation, supported by the Virginia Auto Dealers Association, requires auto manufacturers to deliver a certain percent of Zero Emission Vehicles for sale in Virginia – a percentage that increases over time. It also requires new conventional vehicles to be less polluting, on average. This legislation provides more choice to Virginians to purchase electric vehicles where consumer demand exceeds availability- 1/3 of EVs registered in Virginia were bought out of state. This is because manufacturers prioritize sending EVs to other Clean Car states and some models are ONLY available in clean car states. Moreover, Virginia’s Clean Car legislation has the potential to reduce cumulative CO2 emissions by 48 metric tons and particulate matter pollution along highways by 1,700 metric tons by 2040 helping curb greenhouse gas emission and reduce negative health impacts of air pollution to Virginians - especially to children and other vulnerable communities.	SELC_CleanCars_OpposeHB1267	Agriculture
30	HB1326	reported	Waste Coal	Kilgore	Please oppose HB1326, which would permit waste coal to be used a source for electricity generation. SB120 makes a mockery of Virginia’s climate goals and of the very meaning of clean energy by declaring waste coal a renewable resource. It also undermines Virginia’s transition to zero-carbon electricity by exempting the coal-burning Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center (VCHEC) in Wise County from the provision of the Virginia Clean Economy Act requiring closure of Dominion Energy’s Virginia coal plants by 2045. Moreover, SB120 runs contrary to the interests of Virginia consumers, since the Wise County coal plant is already uneconomic and would cost ratepayers hundreds of millions of dollars to leave in operation. Finally, it is the wrong solution to Southwest Virginia’s legacy of toxic “GOB” piles.	Oppose_HB1326	Commerce & Energy
31	HB1301 companion to SB532	Reported	Repeals Clean Energy & Community Flood Preparedness Act (RGGI)	Kilgore	Please oppose HB1301, which would repeal the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) and the Clean Energy and Community Preparedness Act. RGGI brings economic, health and energy efficiency benefits to participating states. Since its inception in 2021, RGGI has yielded over $200 million to Virginia. Funding is critical to efforts to mitigate carbon pollution and protect Virginians from the effects of climate change.RGGI funds are the only source of state funds for coastal and inland flood mitigation, critically needed to address the most costly and common natural disaster in Virginia. Moreover, RGGI-funded weatherization is projected to save Virginia families 25 to 30 percent on electricity bills each year. Critically, states that have adopted RGGI have collectively seen a reduction in power sector emissions since 2005, $4 billion in benefits to their economies, and over $200 million in health savings to children who are particularly vulnerable to particulate air pollution. Walking from RGGI is a bad deal for Virginians.		Agriculture
32	SB120	revised to study	Amend VCEA; Waste Coal	Hackworth		SC_OpposeSB120	Commerce & Energy	Adds waste coal (toxic GOB piles) to the list of energy sources that meet VCEA Rewable Portfolio Standards; Exempts the coal-burning Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center from the requirements of the VCEA to close Dominion's coal plants by 2045.
33	SB398 companion to HB892	PBI	Undercut RGGI	McDougle			Agriculture
34	SB532 companion to HB1301	PBI	Repeal RGGI	Stuart	Please oppose SB532 which would repeal the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) and the Clean Energy and Community Preparedness Act. RGGI is proven to bring economic, health and energy efficiency benefits to participating states. RGGI funds are the only source of state funds for coastal and inland flood mitigation, critically needed to address the most costly and common natural disaster in Virginia. Moreover, RGGI-funded weatherization is projected to save Virginia families 25 to 30 percent on electricity bills each year. Since its inception in 2021, RGGI has yielded over $200 million to Virginia. Funding is critical to efforts to mitigate carbon pollution and protect Virginians from the effects of climate change. Critically, states that have adopted RGGI have collectively seen a reduction in power sector emissions since 2005, $4 billion in benefits to their economies, and over $200 million in health savings to children who are particularly vulnerable to particulate air pollution. Walking from RGGI is a bad deal for Virginians.	1. CCEWG - RGGI 2. SELC_OpposeSB532 3. SC_OpposeSB532	Agriculture	Repeals the Clean Energy & Renewable Community Preparedness Act which implements RGGI and suspends Virginia's participation in RGGI
35	SB81	incorporated into SB657	Air Board	Stanley	included in set of bills to oppose under 'Protect Citizen Boards'	SELC_OpposeSB81 VCN_OpposeSB81 ProtectCitizenBoards_OpposeBills
36	SB657	Passed Senate (32-Y 8-N)	Citizen Boards	Stuart	Please oppose SB657, which (together with other proposals in the General Assembly) would thwart citizen participation, public engagement and transparency in environmental permitting. Never has it been more important to allow citizens to be involved in critical decisions that affect their health, economic and community well-being. By creating roadblocks and barriers, such as removing a request process for a public hearing, this bill would allow the DEQ to operate behind closed doors without considering input from the people most affected by DEQ's decisions.	Protect_Citizen_Boards_OpposeBills VCN_OpposeSB657	Agriculture
37	SB695	Stricken	Clean cars	Stuart	This bill would effectively repeal the Clean Car standards enacted in 2021. The Clean Car Standards legislation, supported by the Virginia Auto Dealers Association, requires auto manufacturers to deliver a certain percent of Zero Emission Vehicles for sale in Virginia – a percentage that increases over time. It also requires new conventional vehicles to be less polluting, on average. This legislation provides more choice to Virginians to purchase electric vehicles where consumer demand exceeds availability- 1/3 of EVs registered in Virginia were bought out of state. This is because manufacturers prioritize sending EVs to other Clean Car states and some models are ONLY available in clean car states. Moreover, Virginia’s Clean Car legislation has the potential to reduce cumulative CO2 emissions by 48 million metric tons and particulate matter pollution along highways by 1,700 metric tons by 2040. This will curb greenhouse gas emissions and reduce negative health impacts of air pollution to Virginians - especially to children and other vulnerable communities.	SELC_CleanCars_OpposeSB695	Agriculture
38	SB565 See companion HB558	Passed Senate (35-Y 5-N)	Biogas aka 'Surogas'!	Surrovell (Grr)		VCN_OpposeSB565HB558	re-referred Commerce & Labor
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