TCI Regional Policy Design Stakeholder Submissions

Stop this nonsense! We can't afford another tax period! You think we're a wealthy state and we're not. We live in rural areas and we use our vehicles to get to and fro places. I don't care about supporting green "ideas" for larger states or cities. I don't live there. I live in rural Maine. This legislator and our Governor are completely exnoring the people/voters. It's time you respect our program, no new taxes! Live with what you have until you can manage better.

TCI is such a brilliant idea, and expands upon some of the great work our states have already been doing to forward climate policy. My generation is going to be facing the worst effects of climate change, and we don't have time to wait. TCI is a great way to incentivize a decrease in emissions, and to generate revenue to fund renewable energy projects.

Transportation is the biggest source of emissions in the Northeast, and is also seriously declining. Our public transportation infrastructure is terrible, and TCI is a great way to not only reduce these emissions, but to get funding to fix our failing transportation infrastructure.

I think that passing TCI would be very beneficial long-term, and could help all of us in the Northeast reach our emission reduction goals. I'd rather pay a few more cents for gas to have a cleaner, safer environment for everyone. TCI will also help to fund the shift to electric vehicles, which is going to happen no matter what, and TCI would help to make that transition smoother and better for everyone.

I watch friends, coworkers, even peers in a medical treatment program, walk long distances or miss commitments because they are reliant on what is currently the Massachusetts public transit system. Rides are unreliable and buses infrequent. I would rely on buses more if they came more often, and on time.
I also wonder if a difference could be made simply by eliminating idling engines in parking lots—leaving the air conditioning on in the summer, heat in the winter, while going into a store for 10-20 minutes.

The Transportation and Climate Initiative is already an impressive feat in terms of environmental action. The independent organization and union of so many states and stakeholders to address this critical issue sets a commendable example to the rest of the country and demonstrates that we need to act. Transportation is a particularly impactful area with regard to energy use (especially fossil fuel consumption) and also environmental justice. Mobility allows people to not only meet their basic needs but also to access economic opportunities, and with lower-income individuals tending to not have access to personal cars, good public transit is necessary to ensure equitable access to jobs and resources.1,2 Fortunately, the TCI already “recognize[s] and [commits] to investing in and mitigating the impacts on low-income and disadvantaged communities.” The initiative receives my support so long as it makes concerted efforts in the following areas to ensure just outcomes.

Firstly, the cap and invest strategy proposed to bring down emissions and finance the transition to cleaner options needs to protect low-income consumers from gas price increases. In many cap programs, the cost of buying emissions allowances gets passed down to the consumer who ultimately uses the energy source, and this disproportionately impacts lower-income populations.3 Consumers can be shielded from the impact of these added costs through state programs, which can either aid individuals and households in lowering gasoline consumption or provide financial assistance to those with trouble affording their expenses. Rebates and subsidies present more traditional methods, while climate credits are a newer solution; in essence, part of the revenue generated from the sale of emissions allowances returns to consumers to offset the cap costs.3

Secondly, the TCI projects, through this transition to cleaner transportation, a “modest” increase in jobs. Perhaps this isn’t a main benefit of the program, but low-income communities should be given preferential access to these opportunities. Clean energy jobs in particular provide a substantial economic boost to people of lower income brackets: the poverty rates for people who have not completed college or high school are higher than for those who have;4 however, people without higher education can still access these jobs and even make more money than in other jobs for which they would be sufficiently educationally qualified.5 While this would be a more indirect equity outcome of the TCI, it is an important contribution to the upliftment of vulnerable communities and a way to guarantee that they benefit from this initiative.

Addressing climate change is a critical task and by no means an easy one, especially given the wide array of problems to be solved. Given its hefty role in emissions and in our daily lives, transportation is a key place to initiate the shift to cleaner energy. However, in setting a cap on fuel use, the TCI cannot further burden low-income communities. So long as this program fights to uplift vulnerable populations and actively include them in the transition to sustainability, it has my full support.


References
1: White, G.B. (2015, May 26). Stranded: How America’s failing public transportation increases inequality. The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/05/stranded-how-americas-failing-public-transportation-increases-inequality/393419/.
2: Sanchez, T.W., Brenman, M., Ma, J.S., & Stolz, R.H. (2018). What is transportation equity? In The right to transportation: Moving to equity (pp. 7-11). Routledge.
3: Aldersebaes, J. (2016, Aug 8). Environmental justice wins with California cap-and-trade. Triple Pundit. https://www.triplepundit.com/story/2016/environmental-justice-wins-california-cap-and-trade/23946.
4: UC Davis Center for Poverty Research. (n.d.). How does level of education relate to poverty? [Graphs]. Retrieved February 27, 2020, from https://poverty.ucdavis.edu/faq/how-does-level-education-relate-poverty.
5: Marcacci, S. (2019, Apr 22). Renewable energy job boom creates economic opportunity as coal industry slumps. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/energyinnovation/2019/04/22/renewable-energy-job-boom-creating-economic-opportunity-as-coal-industry-slumps/#60a1997a3665.

It is easy to see that rail travel is the future of transportation, as it is the greenest and most efficient form of travel. Having an extensive high or higher speed rail network throughout the east coast is absolutely critical to a sustainable future. This also means making sure the majority of the network is electrified with overhead catenaries, and powered by renewable energy. As a volunteer at the Train Campaign in Western Mass, we are trying to bring rail travel to a region that currently relies heavily on cars as a primary mode of transport. Here is a link to an op-ed that I wrote on the topic, and is very relevant to extending the rail network across MA, CT, and NY.

https://www.berkshireeagle.com/stories/letter-make-views-known-on-berkshire-rail-plans,575360?

Thank you for your thoughtful initial framework for TCI.

I strongly support the equity and environmental justice aspects of this proposal because of the disproportionate impact that fossil fuel burning has on minority, lower income, and rural communities.

Living in Franklin County, MA, a rural region with a great deal of poverty, I would like to see Massachusetts think broadly and with specifics about how to use the TCI funds to increase access to affordable and viable public transportation to rural and low-income residents. For example, our county needs additional and more affordable public transportation to make it possible for people without cars to get to places of employment throughout the week, for night shifts, and on weekends. People in communities without a commercial district also need the ability to get to food shopping, get to medical facilities, etc. with some sort of public transit. Current public transportation here is extremely limited. Perhaps TCI would expand funds for a pilot program in the county--service on demand in small vehicles rather than buses. As our county's population ages, expanded public transportation will be that much more essential.

Thinking outside the box, TCI funds could be used to increase accessibility and expand equity to underserved rural populations by funding the full buildout of broadband. Reliable and up-to-date Internet service could help residents with applying for jobs, professional development, telecommuniting, accessing educational resources and online classes, and accessing support systems and medical professionals, without the need for transportation. Some of our communities and portions of them do not have broadband Internet access; rather they have only satellite or antiquated dial-up connections. This puts these residents at a significant disadvantage.

Lastly, these funds should be used primarily to reverse our greenhouse gases, not for adaptations to the impacts of climate change. We are in a race against time to reverse the devasting affects of climate change, and we must reach beyond the modest climate goals manadated by the Global Warming Solutions Act to avoid the disasterous predictions in the latest IPCC report.

Thank you for considering these comments as you look at finalizing the TCI design.

I recently became aware of the Transportation and Climate Initiative and am writing to you to voice my thanks and support for our continued participation. Climate change is an extremely urgent matter that we must act on immediately to stop and try to reverse. Reducing vehicle pollution is a key element of any greenhouse gas reduction strategy.

I thank you, Governor Baker, for your leadership on climate change. I heard you on Boston Public Radio today and believe you are a champion on fighting for our climate.

We must aggressively reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the commonwealth. Rush hour traffic in our area adds to pollution as thousands of cars creep through our town on their clogged commutes. Expansion of public transportation in communities like mine that are outside the MBTA bus and train routes would be a great help. Increased incentives for electric vehicles and investment in infrastructure to increase the availability of vehicle charging stations would be very helpful as well.

Thank you,
Nicola Payne
Sudbury, MA