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{{#Show badges: | Climate change}}
The '''Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative''' (RGGI) "is the first mandatory, market-based effort in the United States to reduce greenhouse gas emissions." It is a "cap and trade" agreement among ten Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states to "reduce CO2 emissions from the power sector 10% by 2018." The participating states are Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont. <ref>"[http://www.rggi.org/home Homepage]," Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative website, accessed May 2009.</ref>
===NJ pulls out of RGGI===
{{#evpev:youtube|2o-VFocxGN4|300|right|David Koch Praises Chris Christie's Withdrawl from RGGI|right|300frame}}
In April 2011, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said he was re-evaluating the state's participation in RGGI and could opt to withdraw the state. The anticipated policy reversal is in step with recent actions in Maine and New Hampshire, where Republican-dominated legislatures are trying to repeal their states' participation in the RGGI.<ref name=mg>Maria Gallucci, [http://solveclimate.com/news/20110410/koch-bros-influence-felt-new-jersey-governor-weighs-rggi-exit-carbon-trading "Koch Bros. Influence Felt in New Jersey as Governor Weighs Carbon Market Exit"] SolveClimate News, April 11, 2011.</ref>
===Americans for Prosperity sue NY over RGGI===
In June 2011, the [[Koch brothers]]’ corporate [[front group]], [[Americans for Prosperity]] (AFP) filed a lawsuit in New York’s State Supreme Court seeking to reverse the state's participation in the RGGI. New York joined the RGGI in 2005 when former governor George Pataki (R) approved the state’s participation in the program. The suit alleges that New York is "illegally" taxing residents by taking part in RGGI. The AFP complaint also asserts that carbon emissions trading is unconstitutional because it infringes on federal authority to set rules on air pollution and electrical power transmission across states. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo (D), along with the state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, are all named as defendants in the suit.<ref>T.J. Skolnick, [http://desmogblog.com/americans-prosperity-sues-new-york-participating-regional-climate-pact "Americans For Prosperity Sues New York For Participating In Regional Climate Pact"] DeSmog Blog, July 1, 2011.</ref>
==Report finds widespread economic benefits from RGGI==
The 2011 report, [http://www.analysisgroup.com/rggi.aspx "The Economic Impacts of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative on Ten Northeast and Mid-Atlantic States"] by the Analysis Group quantified the economic benefits from the investments made by 10 states that participated in the RGGI in its first three years of existence. The report found that the regional economy gained more than $1.6 billion in economic value added (reflecting the difference between total revenues in the overall economy, less the cost to produce goods and services); customers saved nearly $1.1 billion on electricity bills, and an additional $174 million on natural gas and heating oil bills, for a total of $1.3 billion in savings over the next decade through installation of [[energy efficiency]] measures using funding from RGGI auction proceeds; and 16,000 jobs were created regionwide due to RGGI policies and effects.
The Analysis Group describes itself as providing "economic, financial, and business strategy consulting to law firms, corporations, and government agencies."
==Personnel==
