Midwestern Governors Association's energy goals

In November 2007, members of the Midwestern Governors Association (MGA) signed landmark agreements that put our region on the path toward a clean energy system. The MGA set four priority goals through their Energy Security and Climate Stewardship Platform and committed to developing a regional program to limit and lower global warming pollution through the Midwestern Greenhouse Gas Reduction Accord. Gubernatorial appointments were made, negotiations have begun, and six Minnesota legislators are monitoring the process to ensure regional proposals align with the interests of Minnesota’s citizens and businesses.

Committed to action
Four priorities put the Midwest on track

The MGA set four policy priorities to help meet growing energy demand while reducing global warming pollution:

• meet at least 2 percent of regional annual retail sales of natural gas and electricity through efficiency measures by 2015 and an additional 2 percent each year thereafter
• increase availability of low-carbon fuels tenfold by 2025; reduce the amount of fossil fuel in biofuels by half; and meet half of the region's transportation demand with biofuels and other low-carbon fuels (the less fossil fuel energy that goes into producing biofuels, the less global warming emissions associated with the fuel's production and use)
• produce 30 percent of the region's electricity from renewable sources—wind, biomass, solar—by 2030
• demonstrate integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) technology with both eastern and western coal by 2015 (different types of coal have different energy outputs and associated global warming emissions); new coal plants will have carbon capture and storage (CCS) by 2020; and the entire coal fleet will have CSS by 2050

Cap and trade
Designing a program that works for the Midwest

In addition to clean energy and efficiency goals, the governors of Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and the premier of Manitoba have committed to developing a region-wide program to limit and lower global warming emissions—or cap and trade. These leaders agreed to establish global warming pollution reduction targets and time frames, then develop a market-based and multi-sector cap-and-trade program to meet them.

Each governor appointed state stakeholders to serve on a regional advisory group that will develop a cap-and-trade program by November 2008. The group began meeting in March and will soon model several global warming pollution reduction targets to determine the potential benefits and costs of a Midwest cap-and-trade program. The modeling will also determine which economic sectors should be included.

Minnesota policymakers get involved
Legislators will protect state interests

Minnesota’s participation in a regional cap-and-trade program will help the state meet the economy-wide goals set forth in the Next Generation Energy Act of 2007, but only if the program maximizes emissions reductions at the lowest cost.

To this end, the Green Solutions Act—passed by the Minnesota legislature in 2008—includes oversight of the Midwest process. Six legislators (Sen. Ellen Anderson, Sen. Dennis Fredrickson, Rep. Bill Hilty, Rep. Kate Knuth, Rep. Dennis McNamara, and Sen. Yvonne Prettner Solon) were appointed to observe the program’s development, provide direction based on Minnesota’s priorities, and help guide Minnesota legislative discussions of cap and trade in the 2009 session.

In addition, the Green Solutions Act appropriated additional funding for economic modeling specific to Minnesota. This data will provide the critical information legislators need to discuss the regional cap-and-trade program in 2009. While Governor Pawlenty set the wheels in motion, any regional cap-and-trade program will need approval by the Minnesota legislature to become law.

Add your voice to the discussion
The full regional advisory group will next meet in Milwaukee on July 28-29, and the group will be taking public comments. If you’re unable to attend, you can submit your comments online.

Fresh Energy is a nonprofit organization leading the transition to a clean energy system. One that supports the health of our economies, our communities, and our environment while moving us toward energy independence. www.fresh-energy.org