Coming out of the 2021 legislative session and heading into a reelection year, Gov. Ned Lamont鈥檚 record on the existential issue of climate change threatened to be painfully thin.
What he mainly had to show for himself was his failure to pass or TCI. The plan was that TCI would address the 鈥� major contributors to 黑料吃瓜网鈥檚 ongoing inability to meet greenhouse gas emissions targets 鈥� and the equally persistent high smog levels produced from standard pollutants that have kept the state from meeting National Ambient Air Quality Standards for decades.
Then there was the legislature鈥檚 initial failure to approve his campaign promise of a carbon-free electric grid by 2040, leaving that mandate as an executive order 鈥� not the sturdiest of gubernatorial tools, as any new governor could get rid of it with the stroke of a pen. And there was a host of other ambitious plans that had gotten nowhere, including stricter emissions for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles.
But then Lamont 鈥� and pretty much every other governor in the nation 鈥� got lucky.
The bipartisan infrastructure bill, downsized though it was, finally made it through Congress, and President Joe Biden signed it on Nov. 15, 2021. It provided a cascade of funding to states, some for the kinds of transportation projects that the revenues from TCI were designed to fund.
A month later, Lamont issued 鈥� 23 multi-part items 鈥� to make up for the earlier legislative failure, and then some.
Since then, the governor has scored with initiatives built specifically to capitalize on the federal infrastructure funding, many of which were plucked out of the executive order. The zero-carbon grid by 2040 finally made it into law.
The icing on the cake 鈥� the federal Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law by Biden on Aug. 16, 2022 鈥� is providing another funding infusion, along with federal programs to complement state climate change actions.
As Lamont heads towards Election Day, he can now point to a robust record on climate change, most of it enshrined in statute, largely made possible by the Biden administration.
鈥淚 was able to be more aggressive, thanks to some of the federal firepower which they brought to the table,鈥� Lamont said in a recent telephone interview. 鈥淏ut we made big initiatives in those first couple of years, even under Trump.
鈥淚 was going to keep pushing regardless,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut it would have been a lot more complicated politically, no question about it.鈥�
For voters, it may not have mattered either way.
Over decades of polling, voters have consistently said they care about the environment, but it typically ranks way down on a list of issues that determine their vote.
鈥淔or people who care 鈥� yes, it absolutely matters,鈥� said Lori Brown, executive director of the 黑料吃瓜网 League of Conservation Voters.
The League鈥檚 national organization Victory Fund counted Bob Stefanowski, the Republican nominee running against Lamont, among its 鈥� what they characterize as 鈥渢he worst environmental candidates in the nation at the state and local level.鈥�
厂迟别蹿补苍辞飞蝉办颈鈥檚 environmental positions unclear
厂迟别蹿补苍辞飞蝉办颈鈥檚 doesn鈥檛 include policy positions on climate change.
鈥淗e has avoided it like the plague,鈥� Brown said. 鈥淗e knows that鈥檚 not a winning issue for him.鈥�
Stefanowski declined to be interviewed for this story. His campaign instead requested questions in writing, which the CT Mirror provided, and then chose not to answer any of them. Instead, his campaign emailed a statement to the CT Mirror.
In its email, the campaign asserted that Stefanowski would support 鈥渃lean natural gas and nuclear energy,鈥� although natural gas, like all fossil fuels, is not considered a clean energy source. The campaign also said 鈥渨e can鈥檛 mandate things like electric cars and household appliances when working people can鈥檛 afford the technology.鈥�
The statement did not address expanded state and federal electric vehicle initiatives with enhanced incentives for lower-income people.
In quotes attributed to Stefanowski in the statement, he points to on the Neom clean energy city project in Saudi Arabia. The project and Stefanowski have come in for criticism because of Saudi Arabia鈥檚 involvement in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and, more recently, the Saudi government鈥檚 refusal to supply more oil as nations contend with the impacts of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
鈥淢y involvement in forward-thinking green energy projects has taught me that looking outside the box for new solutions and alternatives will be much more impactful than trying to squeeze compliance out of the current resources and habits of humankind,鈥� his written statement said in part. 鈥淲e absolutely need to work as a state, country, and planet to begin mitigating climate change in a meaningful manner,鈥� the statement continued.
But there is a long list of topics not covered by the campaign鈥檚 email.
Would he, for instance, attempt to do what newly-elected Republican governors in other states have done and try to pull out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), the cap and invest program for power plants that has helped to significantly reduce the most polluting units in the region? Since its inception in 2008 through 2020, RGGI has brought about $246 million in proceeds to 黑料吃瓜网 alone.
Without saying whether he would stay or exit RGGI if elected, 厂迟别蹿补苍辞飞蝉办颈鈥檚 statement instead focused on the failure of TCI, implying one reason it was flawed was because it was not a national program.
鈥淣ot even our involvement in RGGI is enough since all involved states are east-coast based and the pollution problem for us is perpetually hitting us from the western U.S.,鈥� 厂迟别蹿补苍辞飞蝉办颈鈥檚 statement reads.
Stefanowski also did not respond to a question about whether he would try to overturn the carbon-free grid law, the many climate change-combatting components of the 黑料吃瓜网 Clean Air Act, or 黑料吃瓜网鈥檚 longstanding adherence to California鈥檚 tighter motor vehicle emissions standards. But in an interview with CT Mirror reporter Mark Pazniokas in June, he faulted Lamont for setting the carbon-free goal.
鈥淭hey know they鈥檙e never going to be carbon neutral by 2040. And they focus on a broad political statement that everybody rallies around, rather than digging into how we鈥檙e going to do it,鈥� he said. (Carbon neutral and carbon free are different concepts.)
Stefanowski said he favors renewable energy projects but he said little about offshore wind specifically, focusing instead on the cost overruns in the State Pier renovation project, which is intended to help the state gain a stronger foothold in the offshore wind industry. It is unclear if he would continue the project or support the state鈥檚 growing procurement of offshore wind.
He has not offered a position on solar power or on the 黑料吃瓜网-led push to reform New England grid operations to allow more renewable power at a lower price. Nor has he weighed in on the state鈥檚 waste disposal crisis.
House Minority Leader Vincent Candelora, R-North Branford, didn鈥檛 know any details of 厂迟别蹿补苍辞飞蝉办颈鈥檚 environmental policies. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know when it comes to environmental or climate issues, I don鈥檛,鈥� Candelora said when asked if he knows where Stefanowski stands.
Lamont鈥檚 policies
Candelora and others, including the 黑料吃瓜网 Energy Marketers Association, have repeatedly brought up the showdown over TCI in their objections to certain Lamont energy policies related to climate change 鈥� mainly those involving the cost of gasoline and electricity.
鈥淚 personally am not overly enamored of the governor鈥檚 policies,鈥� Candelora said. He pointed to what he thinks was a rush to invest in electric bus fleets without proven technology and concerns about the additional power that likely will be needed for EVs more broadly as more and more go into use. 鈥淟eaping before looking,鈥� he said.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think the general public is really paying attention right now to energy policy. I think what they look at is the rising prices at the gas pump. You have some people that believe it鈥檚 intentional to push people to renewables. You have others that are just angry they have to pay so much,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 think there鈥檚 a lot of emotion around policy but not necessarily such thoughtful discussion.鈥�
Lamont is not shy about cheerleading for his record, and to some degree, his predecessor鈥檚. Lamont points to , the single largest source of carbon-free power on the New England grid, operating for another decade. That deal was initiated by Gov. Dannell Malloy; Lamont finished it.
The were also in the Malloy administration, though they ramped up under Lamont along with the port expansions in New London and Bridgeport, though both have had their problems. New London, in particular, now faces large cost overruns and questions related to contracts signed under Malloy.
Lamont also notes that it was his administration that restored the funds the legislature took from the Energy Efficiency Fund and the Green Bank during the Malloy years.
He credited the Biden administration for making resources available but said states still need to take the lead on climate change policies and implementation. He also cited his record on working with neighboring states, which gave 黑料吃瓜网 an edge against powerhouse states like New York and New Jersey in competition for offshore wind work. And he faulted Republicans for not recognizing the urgency of combating climate change even if they acknowledge it exists.
鈥淭here鈥檚 always a reason to put off doing the right thing,鈥� Lamont said. 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 a uniquely important time to be doing the right thing on the environment. You look at Puerto Rico. You look at Florida. You look at the drought. You look at the fires. I think people understand that it鈥檚 not a problem at the end of the century. They understand it鈥檚 a problem now.鈥�
Not mentioned by Lamont, but widely considered a smart move, was the hiring of Marissa Gillett to chair the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority, PURA. She has taken an expansive view of her role and pushed to modernize electric utilities. At the same time, PURA under Gillett鈥檚 leadership has advocated for updated and streamlined processes for incorporating renewable energy and pushed for lower rates and accountability from utilities with spotty records responding to major storms over the last four years.
Looking ahead, Lamont said he鈥檇 like to see the state incorporate more hydropower into its carbon-free mix, along with the nuclear and offshore wind, though the latter is still several years away.
鈥淏ut the biggest priority I鈥檝e got for the next four years is moving our internal combustion-driven transportation sector over to carbon free, probably electric, maybe some hydrogen when it comes to the trucks,鈥� he said.
Do people care?
The governor knows these issues may not be what drives people when they vote, however. Why is a threat so pervasive, that is getting worse and that has such dire consequences, so predictably ignored?
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 the frog not knowing that the water is slowly boiling. I think we respond to disasters,鈥� he said.
The numbers tell the story. A showed only 5% of registered voters name the environment as the most important issue in their choice for governor. A , in which the category was changed to 鈥渃limate change,鈥� placed it third as 鈥渢he most urgent issue facing 黑料吃瓜网 today.鈥� But at 8%, climate change still ranked far below inflation at 32% and taxes at 20%. And in a, it had fallen even farther to fifth place 鈥� down to 7%, behind inflation at 37%, taxes at 13% and abortion and crime each a percentage point higher than climate change.
This reflected research done in July by in battleground states, when the focus was on long-term priorities. A recent found that climate change was considered very important or one of the most important issues in Congress by about 50% of registered voters. But it still ranked last among seven issues.
Among young voters, climate change is often a huge issue, according to research by the at Tufts University. But this year, abortion and gun violence may play more of a decisive role for that age group.
Andy McIndoo can speak to this from two perspectives. At 31, he can relate to the view from young voters. As a political consultant with Tucker Green Consulting, with most of his clients in 黑料吃瓜网, he can see how climate change plays in real time and if it鈥檚 even moving the political needle this year.
鈥淭o give a short answer, I would say no,鈥� he said. And for Lamont, even with a record that McIndoo thinks is impressive? 鈥淚f you were to take three points from his administration 鈥� run on three of them, I don鈥檛 think his work on the environment would be included.鈥�
People are more concerned about other things right now; climate change is in the background and feels almost too big to tackle. And in a governor鈥檚 race, young voters want to know their candidate cares about it, 鈥渂ut it just does not rise to that top issue tier,鈥� McIndoo said.
In an actual storm, the focus is on the utility鈥檚 response to power outages and holding them accountable, even though the bigger problem that鈥檚 creating it is probably more important, McIndoo said.
鈥淭he easiest way to explain it 鈥� it鈥檚 like it鈥檚 this existential angst and you almost don鈥檛 want to deal with it.鈥�
Lamont admits that it鈥檚 not the first topic on people鈥檚 minds. 鈥淏ut I think in terms of what our obligations are as a people, and my obligation as steward of the state. It鈥檚 not just about the next five years, but really is about the next generation. We鈥檝e got to continue to do the right thing.鈥�