On December 17, 2019, I noted with enthusiasm the announcement that the states participating in the Transportation and Climate Initiative had released a new draft Memorandum of Understanding outlining the framework of what “RGGI for cars” might look like. I also provided a cautionary note that the politics of TCI would be tricky and that imposing a carbon fee sufficient to attain the goal of funding an effective, low-carbon, transportation system for New England in the 21st Century might prove difficult.
I’m sorry to say that it only took one day for me to be proved correct. In an statement something short of being a profile in courage, New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu tweeted last night that New Hampshire would not participate in TCI. Is it any wonder that children, who will be most affected by climate change, have so little faith in our political leadership?
