The check was in the mail for thousands of low-income households across the state over the past few weeks. Maybe you got one, maybe you didn’t, but it’s a spicy issue right now, especially as the election gets closer and closer. We mentioned this was coming several weeks ago, and now it’s time to review.
Here are Five Fast Facts On Electric Bill Credits For Washington State:
- 👪 Lotsa People - The $200 credits were delivered through utility companies to over 685,000 households by September 15th. It was about 10k more than originally planned. Yeah, we told you they wouldn’t have any money left over!
- 💰 Lotsa Dollars - About $135 million was spent on the credits, and another $15 million covered the administrative cost of the program. No word on how much was spent greasing palms in Olympia.
- ☁️ The Source - The program’s funding came from the Climate Commitment Act and the carbon emissions exchange program. Enter the spiciness…
- 📣 The Debate - The program is being billed as a great assistance program for households who need it the most. Opponents say the CCA itself is driving up the cost of energy, and that the credits wouldn’t be needed if the CCA wasn’t around.
- 🤔 Ulterior Motivations? - Some also point out the…ahem…convenient timing of the credits, so close before the election. Given that the credits might not even cover the cost of a month’s worth of energy bills, let alone ongoing assistance, is this just an attempt to subtly buy votes?
🔥Bottom line: We’re happy to see people’s Paychecks stretch further no matter what, but this one does seem a bit sketchy. And we still think that it might be better to have everyone’s energy costs be a bit lower.
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