Massachusetts Climate and Energy

Background

Energy advocacy in Massachusetts is of critical importance for the environmental and economic health of the state and the northeast region. ENE is engaged in intensive efforts to implement the...
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The Green Communities Act (2008 Mass. Acts c.169) was the result of coordinated efforts among environmental and consumer advocates, business, utilities, lawmakers and other stakeholders. It will help the state reach its GHG emissions targets while strengthening the Commonwealth’s economy.

The Act requires that utilities buy as much energy efficiency for their electric and natural gas customers as is cost-effective. This new mandate has led to a dramatic increase in efficiency goals for the state.  Massachusetts has adopted 3 year efficiency plans that will put the state on a path to achieving all cost-effective energy efficiency and to achieve more than $6 billion in consumer benefits through larger investments in cost-saving energy efficiency. This level of efficiency investment will set a new national precedent and makes the state a leader on energy policy.

Read "Massachusetts Sets Ambitious Energy Standards," New York Times.

ENE is a member of the Energy Efficiency Advisory Council, the stakeholder board established to oversee and support the implementation of the Green Communities Act and the expansion of efficiency programs in the Commonwealth. The Efficiency Council works with numerous stakeholders to coordinate with natural gas and electric program administrators, efficiency providers, consumer representatives and others to develop and implement the efficiency plans that help save energy in homes and businesses.

The Council is also working to secure other sources to support increased efficiency investments, including proceeds from cap and trade programs, the Forward Capacity Market and outside investor capital. 

Other Efficiency and Clean Energy Reforms

ENE is helping to implement other key provisions for clean energy and energy conservation included in the 2008 Act, such as:

• adoption of most up-to-date building energy codes to encourage development of high-efficiency combined heat and power (CHP)
• an increase in the RPS requiring utilities to get 15% of their power from renewables by 2020

Complementing the Green Communities Act, the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilties (DPU) issued a pair of orders that implement the decoupling of utility revenues from sales for the first gas and first electric utilities. ENE was a leading voice in advocating for these decisions because decoupling aligns utility and consumer incentives, paving the way for significant increases in efficiency investments that will save consumers money.  Decoupling mechanisms have been approved in rate cases for National Grid Gas and Electric Companies, Bay State Gas, Columbia Gas of Massachusetts and WMECO (see What's New).

Outreach

ENE helped lead a strong and diverse coalition of stakeholders to support the Green Communities Act -- including and other environmental advocates, business community members, multiple utilities, low-income advocates, administrators and legislators.

ENE is now working to expand access to cost-saving efficiency to those sectors that face unique obstacles, including low and fixed income customers, small businesses and residents in multi-family housing units.  We are coordinating with groups such as the Green Justice Coalition and helping to shape innovative pilot projects in Chinatown, Lynn and New Bedford.

Climate

Massachusetts is one of the founding members of the nation’s first mandatory greenhouse gas cap and trade system, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. Through the auction of RGGI allowances, the program has raised millions of dollars for Massachusetts clean energy investments, the majority of which is designated for energy efficiency program expansion, with the remainder primarily to other clean energy programs.

• ENE’s RGGI Auction Tracker shows a detailed breakdown of MA and other states’ auction revenues and expenditures.

• See ENE’s RGGI page for more materials and analysis

Massachusetts also enacted the Global Warming Solutions Act,which provides for an economy-wide cap on greenhouse gas emissions.  The state set the official statewide greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions limit for 2020 at 25 percent below 1990 levels. That level is the maximum authorized by the Global Warming Solutions Act and the most ambitious target for GHG reductions of any state in the country. The Massachusetts Clean Energy and Climate Plan for 2020 outlines a path to the achieving the target. ENE is working with advocates and policy makers to identify and advance priority solutions that will reduce GHGs and support a sustainable clean energy economy.