{"id":4875,"date":"2023-08-10T19:40:00","date_gmt":"2023-08-10T19:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wifamily.news\/?p=4875"},"modified":"2023-08-10T21:06:31","modified_gmt":"2023-08-10T21:06:31","slug":"governor-keeps-alive-possibility-of-local-bans-on-fossil-fuels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wifamily.news\/?p=4875","title":{"rendered":"Governor keeps alive possibility of\u00a0local\u00a0bans on fossil fuels"},"content":{"rendered":"

This post originally appeared at https:\/\/www.badgerinstitute.org\/wisconsin-governor-keeps-alive-possibility-of-local-bans-on-fossil-fuels\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Gov. Tony Evers, who has set as a goal<\/a> that \u201call electricity consumed in the state be 100% carbon-free by 2050,\u201d is making sure that state agencies and local governments are able to ban the use of fossil fuels to run cars and lawnmowers, heat homes and power stoves.<\/p>\n

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\"Gas<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

That\u2019s the practical effect of his vetoes of three\u00a0Republican-backed\u00a0bills\u00a0\u2014 AB141, AB142 and SB49\u00a0\u2014 that would have prohibited such bans.<\/p>\n

His veto messages suggested that banning fossil fuels\u00a0in a state where almost 80% of homes are\u00a0directly\u00a0heated with\u00a0them\u00a0and\u00a0the vast majority of\u00a0cars\u00a0still use gas\u00a0could make it \u201ceasier, not harder, for our state to meet the needs of a 21st<\/sup>-century infrastructure, workforce and economy.\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u00a0didn\u2019t attempt to explain how that could be the case.<\/p>\n

Climate Change<\/strong><\/h4>\n

The bills,\u00a0the governor\u00a0also wrote in\u00a0one of his\u00a0veto messages, would \u201cdiminish our collective ability to help combat climate change.\u201d<\/p>\n

The American Petroleum Institute is among the groups that supported AB141 and AB142\u00a0and also supports \u201cglobal action that drives greenhouse gas emissions reductions and economic development,\u201d a\u00a0recent Badger Institute piece<\/a>\u00a0noted.<\/p>\n

While the costs of bans on fossil fuels would be confined to residents of local\u00a0areas\u00a0or the state,\u00a0impacts on the\u00a0climate\u00a0\u2014 which can be the result of either natural forces or human\u00a0actions\u00a0\u2014 would\u00a0be\u00a0difficult to ascertain and\u00a0mitigated by global realities.<\/p>\n

Carbon dioxide emissions in the United States decreased by 2% between 1990 and 2021, according to the\u00a0EPA<\/a>.\u00a0Since 1990, global CO\u2082 emissions have increased by more than 60 percent,\u00a0according to\u00a0Statista.<\/a><\/p>\n

That hasn\u2019t prevented\u00a0other states\u00a0from passing\u00a0restrictions.<\/p>\n

What\u00a0Some Other\u00a0States Are Doing<\/strong><\/h4>\n

As\u00a0we noted in a recent policy brief:<\/p>\n