H-0074.1

HOUSE BILL 1372

State of Washington
68th Legislature
2023 Regular Session
ByRepresentatives Dye, Ybarra, Chambers, Sandlin, Christian, Schmidt, and Volz
Read first time 01/17/23.Referred to Committee on State Government & Tribal Relations.
AN ACT Relating to improving understanding of greenhouse gas emission tradeoffs associated with the electrification of state vehicles; reenacting and amending RCW 70A.45.050; and creating a new section.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1. The legislature finds that there is a need to make more information available to the public and decision makers about the costs and benefits, both economic and environmental, of converting fleets of vehicles from gasoline-powered engines to electric batteries. The legislature finds that in using taxpayer dollars to procure vehicles for use by state government, the public has a right to expect a transparent evaluation of the cost per mile driven of electric vehicles compared to similar gasoline-powered vehicles, and how much of their money is being spent per ton of carbon emissions reduced taking into account the emissions that go into the production of the vehicles as well as the emissions from operation. Therefore, in order to track the trends over time, the legislature intends to require the publication of a report every two years concerning the tradeoffs in the transition of the electrification of the state vehicle fleet.
Sec. 2. RCW 70A.45.050 and 2020 c 79 s 3 and 2020 c 20 s 1401 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
(1) State agencies shall meet the statewide greenhouse gas emission limits established in RCW 70A.45.020 to achieve the following, using the estimates and strategy established in subsections (2) and (3) of this section:
(a) By July 1, 2020, reduce emissions of greenhouse gases to ((eight hundred five thousand))805,000 metric tons, or ((fifteen))15 percent below 2005 emission levels;
(b) By 2030, reduce emissions of greenhouse gases to ((five hundred twenty-one thousand))521,000 metric tons, or ((forty-five))45 percent below 2005 levels;
(c) By 2040, reduce emissions of greenhouse gases to ((two hundred eighty-four thousand))284,000 metric tons, or ((seventy))70 percent below 2005 levels; and
(d) By 2050, reduce overall emissions of greenhouse gases to ((forty-seven thousand))47,000 metric tons, or ((ninety-five))95 percent below 2005 levels and achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by state government as a whole.
(2)(a) By June 30, 2010, state agencies shall report estimates of emissions for 2005 to the department, including 2009 levels of emissions, and projected emissions through 2035.
(b) State agencies required to report under RCW 70A.15.2200 must estimate emissions from methodologies recommended by the department and must be based on actual operation of those agencies. Agencies not required to report under RCW 70A.15.2200 shall derive emissions estimates using an emissions calculator provided by the department.
(3)(a) By June 1st of each even-numbered year beginning in 2022, state agencies shall report to the department, and to the state efficiency and environmental performance office at the department of commerce, the actions planned for the next two biennia to meet emission reduction targets and the actions taken to meet the emission reduction targets established in this section. The report must also include the agency's long-term strategy for meeting the emission reduction targets established in this section, which the agency shall update as appropriate. The department and the state efficiency and environmental performance office at the department of commerce shall review and compile the agency reports and, by December 1st of each even-numbered year beginning in 2022, provide a consolidated report to the appropriate committees of the legislature. This report must include recommendations for budgetary and other actions that will assist state agencies in achieving the greenhouse gas emissions reductions specified in this section. The department may authorize the department of enterprise services to report on behalf of any state agency having fewer than ((five hundred))500 full-time equivalent employees at any time during the reporting period. The department shall cooperate with the department of enterprise services and the state efficiency and environmental performance office at the department of commerce to develop consolidated reporting methodologies that incorporate emission reduction actions taken across all or substantially all state agencies.
(b)(i) By February 1st of each even-numbered year beginning in 2024, the department of enterprise services must complete an analysis of the life-cycle greenhouse gas emission tradeoffs associated with state vehicle fleet purchases of electric vehicles. A state agency required to report to the department under (a) of this subsection may incorporate by reference the greenhouse gas emissions findings in the department of enterprise services' report under this section. The department of enterprise services' analysis must include:
(A) The purchase price of each type of electric vehicle added to the state fleet during the preceding two years, as compared to comparably sized vehicles that use an internal combustion engine that are used by the state fleet under RCW 43.19.622(4);
(B) The average maintenance and fueling costs for each type of electric vehicle and internal combustion engine vehicle per mile driven;
(C) The purchase date and total number of miles driven by each type of electric vehicle and internal combustion engine vehicle in the state fleet, and the purchase dates and miles driven by each vehicle during the preceding two years;
(D) An estimate of the direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions associated with the use of each type of vehicle in the state fleet over the preceding two years, taking into consideration, at minimum, the number of miles that these vehicles were driven over the preceding two years, the direct emissions from fuel use, the embodied carbon in vehicle components, and reasonable estimates of the longevity of the vehicle's useful life. For purposes of this subsection, embodied carbon refers to the greenhouse gas emissions from the manufacturing and other life-cycle stages of vehicle components, including mining, refining, manufacturing, transportation, installation, maintenance, and disposal of material used in vehicles and vehicle components; and
(E) To assist in tracking whether the total cost to operate the state fleet is declining or increasing as a result of the electrification of the fleet, the best estimate of the cost to the state of ownership and operation of the state vehicle fleet for each of the preceding two years, including the total cost for the ownership and operation of all vehicles in the fleet, and specific ownership and operation totals for the number of vehicles in the fleet that are fully electric, internal combustion engine, or other fuel type.
(ii) The information reported in (b)(i) of this subsection must rely on the best information readily available to the department of enterprise services, but may, as appropriate, use proxy information and data averages and estimates, and may rely on the available life-cycle analyses of greenhouse gas emissions conducted by reputable institutions or experts. Information related to greenhouse gas emissions associated with the operation of electric vehicles may rely on a statewide average based on information made available or used for regulatory purposes by the department of commerce or the department of ecology.
(4) State agencies shall cooperate in providing information to the department, the department of enterprise services, and the department of commerce for the purposes of this section.
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