Washington state is lauded as a leader in climate action. We see the impacts of the climate crisis on our doorsteps through more destructive wildfires, rising temperatures and sea-level rise, so we know the risk of shirking our responsibility when it comes to the climate. And while it is true the state has set ambitious climate commitments — to reach 100% zero-emission electricity by 2045 and reduce greenhouse gas emissions 95% by 2050 — Washington is dead last in a critical area of progress: Bringing new clean energy projects onto our power grid.
In the last decade, administrators of 469 planned energy projects applied for connection to Bonneville Power Authority’s Pacific Northwest regional energy grid. Only one has been approved. Builders are ready with plans for solar and wind projects across the state, but projects can’t be built if there is no access to transmission lines. We will fail to meet our climate goals at this rate and will harm our economy in the process.
We’re now seeing unprecedented demand for electricity, driven by the surge in artificial intelligence and the increased electrification of our homes and businesses. Additionally, the federal government’s recently passed budget megabill just made it far more difficult and expensive to build clean energy anywhere in the country.
Our inability to build new clean energy sources and connect them to the power grid should raise alarm bells for Washingtonians worried about climate change, union members who count on the clean energy sector for good jobs and everyone who pays monthly energy bills — in other words, all of us.
Households can expect to see their utility bills rise by $115 every year by 2029, according to analysts, thanks to growing demand coupled with federal rollbacks on clean energy. Residents may have to expect to spend the equivalent of nearly a month under the threat of brownouts or blackouts annually, according to projections from the Western Electricity Coordinating Council.
We must make it easier to build clean energy and get it to people’s homes and businesses. This means streamlining siting and permitting and investing in both energy generation projects — like solar panels and wind turbines — and the transmission lines that connect them to the grid. And, by doing so with a worker-driven strategy, we can make sure this movement to build new clean energy projects and transmission lines creates jobs and invigorates the local economy for working families.
In 2023, Cornell’s Climate Jobs Institute released a report evaluating the impact that clean energy could have on Washington’s workforce. Researchers found that building a green economy could create over 800,000 jobs across the building, transportation, energy, low-carbon manufacturing, resilience and adaptation sectors. Separate modeling indicates that investments from our landmark Climate Commitment Act could generate $51 billion in economic output.
But when projects can’t get built because there’s no transmission line available for them to connect to, we all lose out.
It’s why our coalition of unions at Climate Jobs Washington has been pushing for state leadership to meaningfully address this transmission crisis. Last year, the Legislature sought to finally address transmission reform by passing Senate Bill 5466, a bill that would have made it cheaper and easier to build new transmission lines, connect new clean energy projects to the grid and create good union jobs. Unfortunately, SB 5466 never made it to the floor before the end of session. We can’t afford to miss that chance again.
As Labor Day approaches, we thank the electrical workers, construction workers, ironworkers, welders, pipe fitters, laborers, cement masons and more whose efforts quite literally keep the lights on. If we go big on building a strong, clean energy grid, not only can we create even more union jobs, we can provide economic stability for communities across the state all while helping meet our climate goals and reducing energy costs. Let’s make good on our promise to be a state that stands up for workers and leads on climate.
