Ann Arbor’s Energy Commission tonight will discuss recommending a carbon pollution impact fee to the City Council, but there are questions about its legality.
The fee would be assessed on all new construction of at least 20,000 square feet that uses natural gas as the primary heating source. The same fee would apply to existing buildings replacing a heating system.
Commissioner John Mirsky introduced the resolution. He says there’s a social cost of carbon.
“Right now, building owners are getting away with imposing that cost onto the rest of us, and what we’re saying, henceforth, is that the building owners would essentially carry that cost.”
But Ann Arbor Sustainability and Innovations Director Missy Stults says the proposed ordinance is almost certainly illegal under Michigan law. She says you can’t punish someone for following the building code, and the code allows the use of fossil fuels.
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