Apply now for $200 utility bill credits

As many as 675,000 low- and moderate-income Washington families are eligible for a $200 credit on their electric bills this fall.

The $150 million for the new program comes from the Climate Commitment Act, Washington’s new carbon-pricing system, which has already brought in more than $2 billion to invest in climate-related projects.

People can apply for the credits, which will be distributed by Sept. 15,  at wacleanenergycredits.com according to the Washington Department of Commerce.

Utility customers who are already enrolled in ratepayer assistance programs for seniors or low-income families, for example, may automatically receive a credit from their utility without applying. The state has set up a simple application for those who think they may also be qualified.

To be eligible, a single person or family will have an income at or below 80 percent of the median income for their region of Washington. In Seattle, that threshold is $77,800 for a single person, $88,800 for a family of two and $111,000 for a family of four.

The rebate — which was proposed by the governor and legislative leaders and passed in the state budget this past March — is to be distributed as a $150 million grant to the state’s utilities to pass on to their customers. The clean-energy rebates are designed to help people deal with any financial burdens related to the cap-and-invest program.

Inslee, whose tenure as governor expires next January, said at a news conference in Seattle on Monday that the Legislature can easily keep the $200 credit program going in future budgets.

“It’s a great thing for 675,000 families to be eligible for this credit,” Inslee said.

Brian Heywood, main financial backer of an initiative to repeal the cap-and-invest program in a November referendum, criticized the credits, saying they are an attempt to “bribe people into keeping the [Climate Commitment Act] operational even though it’s done nothing to curb carbon emissions.”

While opponents of the cap-and-invest program focus mostly on gas prices, supporters point to industries being pushed to decrease harmful carbon emissions while raising money to fund more than 100 energy-saving, health, and ferry-related projects, including insulation and heat pumps to shrink energy costs.

Inslee said that if opponents of the cap-and-invest program are successful in repealing it in November, there is no guarantee it would shrink gas prices.

“The [opponents] are trying to take $200 from these families,” Inslee said, noting that the credits are provided by cap-and-invest revenue. “I think that was reprehensible. They are trying to eliminate something that already exists.”