WSU is supporting a bill that would stand up a committee to prioritize state decarbonization projects as the university seeks to compliance for its facilities with state climate laws enacted in recent years.
House Bill 2330 would establish and task a committee with adopting scoring criteria and providing guidelines for state agencies to use when submitting projects for consideration. The committee is then responsible for determining a recommended funding list to be submitted to the governor’s office and the state Senate and House capital budget committees.
“We’re looking for anything to bring us into compliance with the state’s decarbonization laws,” said Chris Mulick, WSU’s Director of State Relations, during the bill’s hearing before the House Capital Budget Committee. WSU’s initial estimate to enter compliance with the laws is on the order of $1.5 billion, requiring, in part, replacing heat currently generated by the university’s two gas-fired boilers on the Pullman campus. The university is dependent on the state to pay for its compliance with the laws.
You can view WSU’s testimony on the bill below, starting at one hour, 11 minutes and 51 seconds.