STATE GOVERNMENT
A ‘Green New Deal’ for Washington state
Study finds clean energy investments would create about 40,000 jobs/year
OLYMPIA (Dec. 19, 2017) — A comprehensive new study released this month by the Political Economy Research Institute at the University of Massachusetts Amherst examines the prospects for a transformative “Green New Deal” project for Washington state and concludes that the effort will generate about 40,000 jobs per year in the state.
The centerpiece of the Green New Deal is clean energy investments in both renewable energy and energy efficiency. The first aim is to achieve a 40 percent reduction in all human-caused carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in Washington state relative to the state’s 2014 emissions level. The second is to achieve this 2035 CO2 emission reduction standard while also supporting existing employment levels, expanding job opportunities and raising average living standards throughout the state.
The new study estimates that the clean energy investments that would be sufficient to put Washington state on a true climate stabilization trajectory will generate about 40,000 jobs per year within the state. By considering a series of policies to support this state-level Green New Deal program, including a carbon fee that can raise an average of about $900 million per year even with a low-end tax rate of $15 per ton of carbon.
Here is coverage by TheRealNews.com of the report’s release, which includes an interview with Jeff Johnson, President of the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO: