School costs/CCA

AN ACT Relating to addressing increased school transportation and 1
operating costs due to the climate commitment act; amending RCW 2
70A.65.260; adding a new section to chapter 70A.65 RCW; adding a new 3
section to chapter 28A.160 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 4
28A.150 RCW; and providing an effective date. 5
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:6
Sec. 1. RCW 70A.65.260 and 2023 c 475 s 939 are each amended to 7
read as follows: 8
(1) The climate commitment account is created in the state 9
treasury. The account must receive moneys distributed to the account 10
from the climate investment account created in RCW 70A.65.250. Moneys 11
in the account may be spent only after appropriation. Projects, 12
activities, and programs eligible for funding from the account must 13
be physically located in Washington state and include, but are not 14
limited to, the following: 15
(a) Implementing the working families' tax credit in RCW 16
82.08.0206; 17
(b) Supplementing the growth management planning and 18
environmental review fund established in RCW 36.70A.490 for the 19
purpose of making grants or loans to local governments for the 20
purposes set forth in RCW 43.21C.240, 43.21C.031, 36.70A.500, and 21
H-0752.1
HOUSE BILL 1594
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Representative Caldier
Read first time 01/24/25. Referred to Committee on Appropriations.
p. 1 HB 1594
36.70A.600, for costs associated with RCW 36.70A.610, and to cover 1
costs associated with the adoption of optional elements of 2
comprehensive plans consistent with RCW 43.21C.420;3
(c) Programs, activities, or projects that reduce and mitigate 4
impacts from greenhouse gases and copollutants in overburdened 5
communities, including strengthening the air quality monitoring 6
network to measure, track, and better understand air pollution levels 7
and trends and to inform the analysis, monitoring, and pollution 8
reduction measures required in RCW 70A.65.020; 9
(d) Programs, activities, or projects that deploy renewable 10
energy resources, such as solar and wind power, and projects to 11
deploy distributed generation, energy storage, demand-side 12
technologies and strategies, and other grid modernization projects;13
(e) Programs, activities, or projects that increase the energy 14
efficiency or reduce greenhouse gas emissions of industrial 15
facilities including, but not limited to, proposals to implement 16
combined heat and power, district energy, or on-site renewables, such 17
as solar and wind power, to upgrade the energy efficiency of existing 18
equipment, to reduce process emissions, and to switch to less 19
emissions intensive fuel sources; 20
(f) Programs, activities, or projects that achieve energy 21
efficiency or emissions reductions in the agricultural sector 22
including: 23
(i) Fertilizer management; 24
(ii) Soil management; 25
(iii) Bioenergy; 26
(iv) Biofuels; 27
(v) Grants, rebates, and other financial incentives for 28
agricultural harvesting equipment, heavy duty trucks, agricultural 29
pump engines, tractors, and other equipment used in agricultural 30
operations; 31
(vi) Grants, loans, or any financial incentives to food 32
processors to implement projects that reduce greenhouse gas 33
emissions; 34
(vii) Renewable energy projects; 35
(viii) Farmworker housing weatherization programs;36
(ix) Dairy digester research and development; 37
(x) Alternative manure management; and 38
(xi) Eligible fund uses under RCW 89.08.615; 39
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(g) Programs, activities, or projects that increase energy 1
efficiency in new and existing buildings, or that promote low carbon 2
architecture, including use of newly emerging alternative building 3
materials that result in a lower carbon footprint in the built 4
environment over the life cycle of the building and component 5
building materials; 6
(h) Programs, activities, or projects that promote the 7
electrification and decarbonization of new and existing buildings, 8
including residential, commercial, and industrial buildings;9
(i) Programs, activities, or projects that improve energy 10
efficiency, including district energy, and investments in market 11
transformation of high efficiency electric appliances and equipment 12
for space and water heating; 13
(j) Clean energy transition and assistance programs, activities, 14
or projects that assist affected workers or people with lower incomes 15
during the transition to a clean energy economy, or grow and expand 16
clean manufacturing capacity in communities across Washington state 17
including, but not limited to: 18
(i) Programs, activities, or projects that directly improve 19
energy affordability and reduce the energy burden of people with 20
lower incomes, as well as the higher transportation fuel burden of 21
rural residents, such as bill assistance, energy efficiency, and 22
weatherization programs; 23
(ii) Community renewable energy projects that allow qualifying 24
participants to own or receive the benefits of those projects at 25
reduced or no cost; 26
(iii) Programs, activities, or other worker-support projects for 27
bargaining unit and nonsupervisory fossil fuel workers who are 28
affected by the transition away from fossil fuels to a clean energy 29
economy. Worker support may include, but is not limited to: (A) Full 30
wage replacement, health benefits, and pension contributions for 31
every worker within five years of retirement; (B) full wage 32
replacement, health benefits, and pension contributions for every 33
worker with at least one year of service for each year of service up 34
to five years of service; (C) wage insurance for up to five years for 35
workers reemployed who have more than five years of service; (D) up 36
to two years of retraining costs, including tuition and related 37
costs, based on in-state community and technical college costs; (E) 38
peer counseling services during transition; (F) employment placement 39
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services, prioritizing employment in the clean energy sector; and (G) 1
relocation expenses; 2
(iv) Direct investment in workforce development, via technical 3
education, community college, institutions of higher education, 4
apprenticeships, and other programs including, but not limited to:5
(A) Initiatives to develop a forest health workforce established 6
under RCW 76.04.521; and 7
(B) Initiatives to develop new education programs, emerging 8
fields, or jobs pertaining to the clean energy economy;9
(v) Transportation, municipal service delivery, and technology 10
investments that increase a community's capacity for clean 11
manufacturing, with an emphasis on communities in greatest need of 12
job creation and economic development and potential for commute 13
reduction; 14
(k) Programs, activities, or projects that reduce emissions from 15
landfills and waste-to-energy facilities through diversion of organic 16
materials, methane capture or conversion strategies, installation of 17
gas collection devices and gas control systems, monitoring and 18
reporting of methane emissions, or other means, prioritizing funding 19
needed for any activities by local governments to comply with chapter 20
70A.540 RCW; 21
(l) Carbon dioxide removal projects, programs, and activities; 22
((and))23
(m) Activities to support efforts to mitigate and adapt to the 24
effects of climate change affecting Indian tribes, including capital 25
investments in support of the relocation of Indian tribes located in 26
areas at heightened risk due to anticipated sea level rise, flooding, 27
or other disturbances caused by climate change. The legislature 28
intends to dedicate at least $50,000,000 per biennium from the 29
account for purposes of this subsection; and30
(n) Programs to offset increased pupil transportation costs and 31
utility costs experienced by schools due to the Washington climate 32
commitment act, as codified in this chapter. 33
(2) Moneys in the account may not be used for projects or 34
activities that would violate tribal treaty rights or result in 35
significant long-term damage to critical habitat or ecological 36
functions. Investments from this account must result in long-term 37
environmental benefits and increased resilience to the impacts of 38
climate change. 39
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(3) During the 2023-2025 fiscal biennium, the legislature may 1
appropriate moneys from the climate commitment account for activities 2
related to environmental justice, including implementation of chapter 3
314, Laws of 2021. 4
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 70A.65 5
RCW to read as follows: 6
(1) By September 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, the department 7
of commerce, in consultation with the utilities and transportation 8
commission, must calculate a school utilities impact percentage for 9
each school district. The department of commerce must report the 10
school utility impact percentage for each school district to the 11
office of the superintendent of public instruction to calculate 12
allocations under section 4 of this act. 13
(2) For purposes of this section, "school utility impact 14
percentage" means the impact of the cap and invest program created by 15
the climate commitment act on utility costs for each school district, 16
excluding costs otherwise mitigated by the allocation of no-cost 17
allowances under this chapter, as a percentage increase above 18
estimated utilities costs without the compliance activities required 19
under the climate commitment act's cap and invest program.20
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 28A.160 21
RCW to read as follows: 22
In addition to the student transportation allocation provided 23
under RCW 28A.160.180, the superintendent of public instruction must 24
allocate an amount to each school district equal to its student 25
transportation allocation multiplied by 0.01166 to offset increased 26
fuel costs due to the Washington climate commitment act. Allocations 27
from this section must come from the climate commitment account 28
established under RCW 70A.65.260 and are not part of the state's 29
program of basic education. 30
NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. A new section is added to chapter 28A.150 31
RCW to read as follows: 32
In addition to allocations provided under RCW 28A.150.260(8) for 33
materials, supplies, and operating costs, the superintendent of 34
public instruction must allocate to each school district an amount 35
equal to half of the allocation for utilities and insurance under RCW 36
28A.150.260(8) multiplied by the district's school utility impact 37
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percentage provided under section 2 of this act. Allocations from 1
this section must come from the climate commitment account 2
established under RCW 70A.65.260 and are not part of the state's 3
program of basic education. 4
NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. Sections 3 and 4 of this act take effect 5
September 1, 2026.6
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