State Senator Mike Barrett

Boston.com

“Getting to net zero is absolutely necessary, but it’s also a big lift,” state Sen. Mike Barrett, lead author and the chair of the Senate Utilities & Energy Committee, said in a statement. “This bill is all about the how of it, as in ‘Here’s how we are going to get there.’”

“We want this commission to be an independent guardian of the future, notably the future of younger generations, insulated from political pressure and consisting of the most authoritative and credible Massachusetts voices we can find,” Barrett said. “Job one for the commission is to tell us if we’re on track in bringing down emissions. Job two is to advise us on what to do next.

“The commission will give us objective information about the performance of both government and the private sector and will pay special attention to the impact on low-income and other disadvantaged communities,” he added. “If the commission works as intended, it will be a new voice, standing apart from politics as usual and committed to shedding light on a very hard problem.”

“We want this commission to be an independent guardian of the future, notably the future of younger generations, insulated from political pressure and consisting of the most authoritative and credible Massachusetts voices we can find,” Barrett said. “Job one for the commission is to tell us if we’re on track in bringing down emissions. Job two is to advise us on what to do next.”

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Wicked Local Waltham

Sen. Michael Barrett, who represents Waltham, told reporters Thursday that he “wanted to put a price on carbon by any path we could lay our hands on.” Barrett joined Sen. Michael Rodrigues and President Karen Spilka to detail the Senate’s climate bill which has been teed up for debate next week.

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WickedLocal Duxbury

Senate President Karen Spilka built upon the net-zero pledge on Jan. 23 when she joined Sen. Michael Barrett and Sen. Michael Rodrigues to outline a package of three bills to codify the 2050 emission goal, accelerate the electrification of state’s cars and trucks and task the administration with pricing carbon through the economy, including the transportation and building sectors.

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WWLP

The Next Generation Climate Policy Plan is one of the most aggressive environmental plans in the country and if it goes into effect it could change how you live and how you commute.

The plan features a series of long and short term environmental goals, including net zero emissions by 2050.

In an attempt to do so, all public transportation as well as personal vehicles will have to be electric. The way you heat your home is also subject to change.

“Every house virtually and certainly every business won’t be able to use by 2050 heating oil or natural gas,” Senator Michael Barrett (D-Lexington) said.

The bill would authorize carbon-pricing which in turn could increase the gas tax, but supporters of the plan say the status quo needs to change.

Monday was the last day lawmakers had to file amendments to the bill. They are expected to have a full debate on the proposal on Thursday.

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ClimateXChange

“There’s been a marked change in the last 12 months with respect to public attitudes toward climate change. I’m certainly sensing that in my district. I think we’re moving from awareness to alarm, and from alarm to anxiety. We are scarcely staying ahead of public opinion when we put this ambitious bill forward.”

“The protection of low-income people is a central theme of this bill. We’ve done a number of major innovations here to make sure that low-income people are protected.” [Senator Barrett then pointed to the mandate of the new climate commission to consider underserved communities, requiring a public hearing in low-income communities, and new low-income solar for the state.]

“The House may feel uneasy accepting the Senate’s very specific formulation in regard to carbon pricing, but the House should feel relaxed about knowing that a Governor would have a choice and that the House in voting to give the Governor a choice wouldn’t be signifying its commitment to one form of carbon pricing over another. These are not ideas that the House has rejected in the past. This is fresh thinking, these are fresh approaches, and my hope is that the House feels very good about reaching them with an open mind.“

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Boston Herald

Sen. Michael Barrett said the legislation “quite frankly” requires Baker to come up with a back-up plan should TCI be unsuccessful, with Barrett said he supports. He suggested Massachusetts collaborate with California as a potential Plan B, but critics argue that the public will not tolerate these types of costly and ineffective initiatives.

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Boston Business Journal

Sen. Michael Barrett told reporters Thursday that he “wanted to put a price on carbon by any path we could lay our hands on.” Barrett joined Sen. Michael Rodrigues and President Karen Spilka  to detail the Senate’s climate bill which has been teed up for debate next week.

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WCVB

Senator Mike Barrett: “In Massachusetts and throughout the country, we all need to be in electric vehicles by 2050. That’s 30 years to take all our emissions and get them down to a point that we’re not contributing to the problem.”

“Right now, we use natural gas or heating oil. Most of that in the next 30 years has to go away.”

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