Opinion: Olympia’s mandate and your power bill

In this opinion column, Nancy Churchill argues that Washington’s 2019 Clean Energy Transformation Act created an unfunded mandate on local utilities, forcing small public utility districts to subsidize broad low‑income energy discounts out of their own rate base. Citing data from northeast Washington, she says the burden is landing on working families just above the cutoff line, and that House Bill 1903 would move funding and administration of the program to the state using Climate Commitment Act dollars. Churchill walks readers through how the bill would work, why she believes it’s “pro‑rural” and “pro‑taxpayer,” and urges rural residents to contact lawmakers and demand a hearing on HB 1903. https://www.clarkcountytoday.com/opinion/opinion-olympias-mandate-and-your-power-bill/#WashingtonState #Opinion #HB1903 #CleanEnergyTransformationAct #RuralWashington #EnergyPolicy