WA farmers wrongly charged under climate laws pleading for a fix
OLYMPIA, Wash. - For years, Washington State has been losing two farms per day, and the impact of the Climate Commitment Act is making it even harder for some to survive.
The Washington Farm Bureau says the Climate Commitment Act which passed in 2021 is now disproportionately impacting small farms. If the system worked as intended, farmers wouldn’t have been negatively impacted at all.
Lawmakers in Olympia say they exempted farmers from paying the extra costs associated with the Climate Commitment Act. It was a cornerstone measure for former Governor Jay Inslee.
Supporters believe the extra cost imposed on carbon polluters will discourage the use of fossil fuels and those who pollute would be held accountable with extra fees.
But the complicated system was not streamlined as promised, causing farmers to be incorrectly charged.
Local perspective:
DeGoede Farms in Sumner is one of many farms affected.
Inside their greenhouse, they harvest Bibb lettuce. It takes six weeks to go from a seed to local stores.
"We all support the environment, and we want to do it the right way," said owner Ben Degoede.
DeGoede equipped his greenhouse with LED lights and solar panels. They also harvest rainwater from the roof for more sustainability. The Sumner farm uses a natural gas boiler to heat the greenhouse.
"There is no efficient way to heat a greenhouse with just electricity," DeGoede said.
The cost of doing business is high, but DeGoede says it’s even tougher due to the Climate Commitment Act. He must pay more to operate and transport his harvest.
"The Climate Commitment Act is definitely contributing to farm loss," said Bre Elsey with the Washington Farm Bureau.
The Climate Commitment Act and its cost
By the numbers:
Elsey says the Department of Ecology was supposed to have a system in place to exempt farmers from those added costs.
Large farms purchasing fuel from wholesale suppliers are now receiving those exemptions, but Elsey says that is not the case for many middle- and small-sized operations like DeGoede farm.
"Some of our smallest farmers purchase their fuel at retail locations and, currently, there is no mechanism to apply the exemption at retail locations," Elsey said.
Elsey and some lawmakers in Olympia are asking why there has been little accountability for the Department of Ecology to streamline the system.
"That’s a good question, and if you’ve seen the Spider-Man meme — [it's] a lot of agencies pointing at the other agencies saying ‘That’s not our job.’ We were very clear that it was [the Department of] Ecology’s job, they are supposed to implement those exemptions," Rep. Chris Corry said.
Dig deeper:
FOX 13 reached out to the Department of Ecology, who said in part:
"The remaining challenges we’re aware of come from off-farm sales — such as at retail gas stations or card-check stations. it’s more difficult to track who is buying fuel and for what purpose at those locations, and so there may be difficulties in applying the exemptions…"
But this year, the pressure for a solution is now coming from the top, with Governor Ferguson addressing the issue during his inauguration speech. He told a Republican lawmaker that he is on the side of the farmers.
"I share your commitment to supporting Washington farmers. By the way, that includes ensuring they receive the rebates they were promised under the Climate Commitment Act," Governor Ferguson said.
Farmers like DeGoede say the current situation is broken and bureaucratic, and he is hoping for a permanent fix sooner rather than later.
"The state is hard to deal with business-wise, the climate is not easy here, and we are trying to make it work despite that," Degoede said.
Last year, the Legislature passed a $30 million grant to offset expenses for farmers who were incorrectly charged. The farm bureau says that the amount is not enough to cover the full cost to all the farmers impacted. As of late January, no bills have been introduced in the legislature to address the issue. There is bipartisan support for a solution, so a measure is expected to be filed.
The Source: Information comes from original reporting by FOX 13 Seattle anchor and reporter Hana Kim.
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