SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California has raised $681 million from the latest quarterly auction of permits to release greenhouse gases.
The California Air Resources Board announced Wednesday that all permits for current emissions sold for slightly above the minimum price.
California’s cap-and-trade program requires major polluters to obtain a permit for each ton of carbon they emit.
Sixty percent of the revenue is earmarked for specific projects including a high-speed train between San Francisco and Los Angeles. The remaining 40 percent is divvied up by state lawmakers for programs that address climate change, such as electric-vehicle subsidies.
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Cap and trade is a central part of California’s plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030.