California Public Workshop: Potential Amendments to the Cap-and-Trade Regulation
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The California Air Resources Board (CARB) invites interested parties to participate in a public workshop on updates to the California Cap-and-Trade Program and Mandatory GHG Reporting Program. CARB staff will present on allowance budget scenarios and concepts related to the overall distribution of allowances, including EDU allocation and post-2030 budgets. CARB staff will also present on topics relevant to treatment and reporting of electricity imports, biogenic emissions, and limited emissions exemptions.
Date: October 5, 2023
Time: 9:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Location: Remote only
Staff will request written feedback following the workshop through 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time on October 26, 2023. A link to submit written feedback will be posted to the Cap-and-Trade Meetings & Workshops webpage.
For special accommodations or language needs please contact Camille Sultana no later than September 21.
Workshop Registration
This public workshop will be available via Zoom. Attendees will be able to ask questions or provide comments during the workshop. All attendees must register in advance. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email with information about how to access the workshop by computer or by telephone.
Market-Sensitive Information and Workshop Materials
Given the existing market and the fact that some topics may influence current market behavior, CARB will exercise due diligence to ensure all market influencing information is made available to all stakeholders at the same time. Workshop materials will be posted at 12 p.m. on October 3 to the Cap-and-Trade Meetings & Workshops webpage.
Cap-and-Trade Background
CARB first formally adopted the Cap-and-Trade Regulation in October 2011. The Board adopted amendments to the Regulation in June 2012, October 2013, April 2014, September 2014, June 2015, July 2017, March 2018, and December 2018. The California Cap-and-Trade Program and Québec Cap-and-Trade System have participated in a linked carbon market since January 2014. In 2017, AB 398 was passed by a supermajority in the Legislature and included prescriptive direction on the design of the program from 2021 through 2030. The Cap-and-Trade Regulation establishes a declining limit on major sources of GHG emissions throughout California, and it creates a powerful economic incentive for significant investment in cleaner, more efficient technologies. The regulation is one of the measures adopted by CARB, pursuant to Health and Safety Code Sections 38500-38599 (AB 32) to reduce California’s greenhouse gas emissions and advance the State’s climate goals. It complements other measures to ensure that California cost-effectively meets its goals for GHG emissions reductions.
See Cap-and-Trade Program for more information.
Environmental Analysis
At the workshop staff will provide an overview of CARB’s process for preparing the Environmental Impact Analysis (EIA) and its content required under the California Environmental Quality Act. Staff welcome public input at the workshop on the appropriate scope and content of the EIA at the beginning of our process, including the reasonably foreseeable methods of compliance with the proposal, the potential significant adverse impacts associated with the methods of compliance, potential feasible mitigation measures, and feasible alternatives to the proposal that could reduce or eliminate any significant adverse impacts. A draft of the EIA will be released for public review and comment in 2024.