Maine Climate Council legislation enacted

Newly enacted Maine legislation establishes the Maine Climate Council to advise the Governor and state Legislature on ways to mitigate the causes of, prepare for and adapt to the consequences of climate change, and calls for significant reductions in the state's overall greenhouse gas emissions.

On June 26, 2019, Maine Governor Janet Mills signed into law An Act to Promote Clean Energy Jobs and To Establish the Maine Climate Council. One set of provisions in the new law establishes a requirement that Maine reduce gross annual greenhouse gas emissions -- to at least 45% below the 1990 gross annual greenhouse gas emissions level by 2030, at least 80% below the 1990 gross annual greenhouse gas emissions level by 2050, and on track to meet the 2050 target by 2040. The law requires the Department of Environmental Protection to adopt rules to ensure compliance with these levels, and authorizes the Department of Transportation to adopt similar rules.

Crucially, the rules must prioritize greenhouse gas emissions reductions by sectors that are the most significant sources of greenhouse gas emissions, as identified by the United States Energy Information Administration and in the department's biennial reports, taking into account gross greenhouse gas emissions reductions achieved by each sector since 1990 and the cost-effectiveness of future gross greenhouse gas emissions reductions by each sector. While the electricity sector has largely been decarbonized, transportation and heating lag significantly. Maine's transportation sector was responsible for 53 percent of the state's greenhouse gas emissions in 2017, with heating taking the next greatest share. Meanwhile, electricity generation in Maine accounted for just 9 percent of the state's greenhouse gas emissions.

The law also creates a 39-member Maine Climate Council, with a subcommittee for scientific and technical matters and various working groups. The Council must meet at least every three months, report annually to a legislative committee, and prepare an updated climate action plan by December 1, 2020 and every four years thereafter. The climate action plan must include a clean energy economy transition plan.