Where's that RGGI money actually going? NRDC blog hides the inconvenient truth

Northeast Senators Need to Bring Northeast Climate Leadership to Washington | Dale Bryk's Blog | Switchboard, from NRDC

The Northeastern states have made some of the greatest advances figuring out how to make this transition in a smart way. In January, 2009 they launched RGGI, a “cap-and-invest” program whereby the states auction a limited number of global warming pollution permits quarterly and use the proceeds to promote energy efficiency. The states’ analysis shows that this innovative pairing of a pollution cap and stepped up efficiency will actually reduce energy bills for the average household by over $100 per year.

Flashback: You know that money that we urgently needed to save your grandchildren from CO2-induced hellfire?

Lately, however, a few of the cash-strapped states have had other designs on the money. The same day as the most recent auction, June 9, New Hampshire lawmakers voted to take all of the state's expected $3.1 million share of the proceeds and use it to help plug a $295 million budget hole. That move came after New York and New Jersey had staged even bigger raids on cap-and-trade funds. New York transferred $90 million out of a fund of auction proceeds and into its general fund.