HOUSE AND SENATE negotiators reached a deal on a new climate bill Thursday, bridging a political divide that seemed almost insurmountable when the legislative session ended in July.
The key negotiators – Rep. Jeffrey Roy of Franklin and Sen. Michaeal Barrett of Lexington – released a statement saying they have an agreement in principle and hope to release the final bill in the coming days. If Republicans go along, the measure could be approved quickly in informal sessions. If not, there is a possibility passage could wait until the House and Senate come back into formal session to deal with economic development legislation.
The compromise bill includes language that is expected to speed up the siting and permitting of energy infrastructure projects by giving an existing state board more power and setting a fixed time limit on challenges. The siting and permitting language was a high priority of Gov. Maura Healey, who included it in a must-pass, close-out spending bill she filed on September 11, when it appeared the House and Senate would be unable to pass a climate bill this session.
The measure also includes several priorities of the House, including language promoting the development of battery storage facilities and tweaking the current regulatory process for procuring offshore wind. Healey had pushed for language giving her administration greater control over the procurement process, but those provisions were abandoned while language was inserted allowing the state to negotiate power contracts lasting 30 years instead of the current 20 years for offshore wind and battery storage projects. Roy said the hope is that a longer contract will yield lower power prices for the electricity.
The bill also includes first-of-its-kind language extending renewable energy subsidies to fusion power if and when it becomes a reality and also redefines clean energy under Massachusetts law to include power from existing New England nuclear plants – Millstone, based in Waterford, Connecticut, and Seabrook Station, in Seabrook, New Hampshire.
Barrett said he secured five provisions in the compromise bill that would have the effect of reining in the natural gas industry and hopefully offering some price relief for consumers. It also changes the legal definition of a natural gas utilities to give them license to deliver geothermal power, a possible first step in changing the business model of natural gas utilities.
Barrett, who just a month ago saw little hope for a new climate bill, called the compromise unveiled Thursday a “very strong bill.” He added: “This really is one of those classical win-wins.” Roy’s comments were almost identical.
Both lawmakers had been under intense pressure from climate activists to pass a broader bill instead of going along with the piecemeal approach attempted by Healey as a bid to get some of her priorities approved before the year ends and a new legislative session begins.
In their joint statement, Roy and Barrett indicated a broader bill was a necessity. “Massachusetts must continue to be a national leader in the effort to combat climate change, a prerequisite for which will be transitioning to a clean energy economy and creating high-quality jobs in the process,” they said. “That’s why our respective teams are working diligently to file the conference report in the coming days, with the goal of sending these critical reforms to the governor’s desk for her signature as soon as possible.”
The compromise bill jettisons language favored by the Senate and the governor that would have shut down the retail electricity supply industry in Massachusetts, which has been accused of deceptive sales practices. Roy said he was open to reforms of the industry but not its complete shutdown.
The bill also does not include an expansion of the state’s bottle deposit law that the Senate had included in its proposal. Barrett said the compromise bill does establish a commission to investigate ways to expand the responsibility of manufacturers to reduce their use of plastic.
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