OEC and Allies Rally Against Fossil Fuels in the Climate Change Battle

As we eagerly await the release of the final rules for Oregon's Climate Protection Program (CPP), OEC and our partners in the Coalition for Climate and Economic Justice extend a sincere "Thank YOU" to everyone who took the time to submit public comments to help restore this vital program. Together, we've taken critical, local action in the global fight against climate change. The Power of Our Collective Voices

The public comments submitted to the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) - alongside the hundreds of comments submitted by OEC, our partners, and supporters - emphatically reinforce our shared commitment to the Climate Protection Program and the future of our state. To amplify our shared goal of restoring the CPP, OEC joined forces with environmental justice, climate, and community-based partner organizations from across the state. We formed the Coalition for Climate and Economic Justice. In total, the Coalition for Climate and Economic Justice boasted nearly 50 member groups representing thousands of Oregonians. Collectively, we teamed up with hundreds of advocates to push back against the oil and gas industry's attempts to weaken our state's critical climate protections. Thank you for your unwavering support of this vital program.

Restoring the CPP is more than just an environmental necessity - it's also a historic opportunity for state leaders to prioritize the health and well-being of our communities. If our shared expectations for the restored CPP are met, fossil fuel companies will be required to cut their pollution by 90% by 2050. With the CPP in play, Oregon will also usher in a new Community Climate Investment (CCI) Program. Every year, this innovative program would direct $150+ million towards clean energy projects to the communities across Oregon most impacted by climate change.

With the CPP, Oregon can take a significant step toward meaningfully cutting pollution and creating a sustainable and just future for all residents.

Necessary Elements For a Successful CPP

With your support, we sent the Department of Environmental Quality a clear message : It's time for Oregon to restore a strong CPP that delivers climate justice, follows the science, and holds industrial polluters accountable.

As part of the Coalition for Climate and Economic Justice, OEC shared the following specifics with DEQ on CPP rule language we support and oppose.

CPP Rule Language We Support:

• Follow the Science! Uphold a Strong Cap:A science-based emissions cap is essential to moving the needle on climate pollution. We strongly support DEQ's proposal to adjust compliance periods to every two years. Delivering near-term emissions reductions which will provide immediate public health benefits by reducing harmful co-pollutants that disproportionately affect BIPOC communities and low-income Oregonians. Near-term emissions reductions will also deliver significant economic benefits, by encouraging investment in clean energy and other emissions-reducing technologies and innovations.
• Keep it Local! No Offsets Allowed:Oil and gas companies want to invest in projects outside of Oregon to get out of reducing their own climate pollution in our communities. Unlike Community Climate Investments, offsets do not support Oregon environmental justice communities in the transition to clean energy, do not prevent climate emissions or health-harmful co-pollutants, and do not deliver clean air benefits to local communities. We agree with DEQ in saying no to offsets! Our state's climate and people deserve the full benefit of these investments in reducing pollution and fostering community resilience.
• Stand Firm on Strong CCI Prices: By maintaining a strong price for Community Climate Investment (CCI) credits, the CPP will drive meaningful investments to reduce climate change and benefit our communities. CCIs offer an important flexibility option for regulated companies; if a company cannot meet its pollution reduction requirements, they can instead choose to invest in CCI credits to meet some of their obligations. By keeping CCI prices strong, these funds will go towards meaningful clean energy projects to help our local communities and economies thrive.
• Regulate Industrial Methane Gas Emissions:Directly regulating natural gas emissions from large industrial polluters under the CPP's declining cap. Including these emissions within the cap is a good way to provide certainty to Oregon-based industries, deliver meaningful emissions reductions, and improve air quality in impacted communities. We support DEQ's proposal to directly regulate industrial natural gas emissions while maintaining the integrity of the cap.

CPP RULES WE OPPOSE:

• NO More Loopholes; Deliver Climate Justice:Adding new compliance tools for oil and gas companies will weaken our ability to cut climate pollution. Providing an oversupply of compliance tools will benefit fossil fuel companies' bottom lines at the expense of communities most impacted by climate pollution, and severely weaken the CPP's ability to deliver near-term climate, economic, and public health benefits.
• NO More Delays; One Year Compliance:We have already lost three critical years of pollution reduction and community investment because of oil and gas litigation. Delaying compliance requirements would reward them for overturning the CPP. The first compliance period must be one year. Justice delayed is justice denied.
• NO Emissions Left Behind; Hold Industrial Polluters Accountable:As currently proposed, the rules would exclude emissions from industrial processes from regulation under the cap. Instead, the rules would allow large industrial facilities to self-identify personalized pollution reduction plans. DEQ should hold all industrial source pollution accountable to mandatory limits under the cap to best protect Oregonians and reduce harmful co-pollutants in our air and water.

- How Did Oregon Get Here? Initially implemented in January 2022, the Climate Protection Program was a groundbreaking regulatory effort to reduce greenhouse gas pollution by oil and gas companies in Oregon. The CPP targeted a 35% cut in carbon emissions by 2035 - and a 90% cut by 2050. It also set up a program to enable $150 million in annual investments for clean energy projects in communities across Oregon. At the time, the CPP was a historic victory for Oregon's climate, local economies, and for Oregonians - especially Black, Indigenous, people of color, low-income, and rural communities who stand to benefit the most from emissions reductions and local clean energy investments. Then, late in 2023, the CPP was derailed when the oil and gas industry sued to overturn the program. The lawsuit was a devastating blow to our environment, and our most marginalized communities. OEC covered the details of this oil and gas industry lawsuitat the time, and sounded the alarm. Thankfully, DEQ and Governor Kotek responded with a bold commitment to restore the CPP, and launched a rulemaking to reinstate the rules by the end of 2024.

Rollout of CPP Final Rules

Right now, DEQ is hard at work developing updated, final rules for the CPP. The public comments submitted by OEC, our partners in the CCEJ, and from fellow advocates like you will be referenced as DEQ considers key elements of this program including the timeframe for increasing emissions caps, as well as the distribution mechanisms for clean energy project funds.

DEQ is expected to release final CPP rules later this month or by early-November. OEC will publish a detailed assessment of these rules along with the expected outcomes for our state. While we await these vital regulations, we want to share our sincere appreciation to all of you who raised your voice in support of a strong CPP. Thank you for joining with us, our coalition partners, and hundreds of your fellow Oregonians to speak up on behalf of our environment and for our future!