State to Spend $350K for Climate Change Consultant

The Washington State Office of Financial Management reports it has taken 14 applicants for the position of consultant on climate change.

According to The Olympian Newspaper:

At a cost of up to $350,000, the contractor will study what strategies could work to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions in the state, and what the costs could be. That includes a look at what has been done elsewhere, with California’s cap-and-trade system of pollution credits and British Columbia’s carbon tax as likely subjects of comparison.
It’s part of a $627,500 study called for in a law signed by Inslee in April, aiming to figure out how to meet limits on emissions that are supposed to be achieved by 2020 but now appear out of reach barring changes.

GOP members in the legislature want Inslee's climate change committee and this consultant to clearly spell out climate change costs before any actions are taken.

The climate change mandates that the state is reportedly supposed to meet by the year 2020 came from House Bill 1303 that was passed in 2007, largely by Democratic support. However, due to the collapse of the attempt to establish a cap-and-trade system, it appears these goals will not even come close to being met.

Much of the collapse came due to opposition in Congress because many states have refused to establish such systems because of the effect on industry and the economy.

However, Inslee is forging ahead with this project at a cost of over $627,000.