With failed policies at the global and federal level, the leaders of Massachusetts must enact legislation to move our state towards 100% Clean Electricity in 10 Years and lead by example with policies that minimize the harms of global climatic disruption.

Many people will ask us: is 100% Clean Electricity in 10 years really possible?

The Massachusetts State House and the Massachusetts State Senate seem to believe so when they passed a joint resolution [PDF] calling on congress to Repower America with 100% Clean Electricity by 2019 in the spring of 2009.

But we understand there are legitimate concerns about technological feasibility.  An October 2009 study [PDF] demonstrates that we can get sufficient amounts of electricity from Massachusetts' renewable resources to cover all of our state's needs.

But still people will want to know, how will we accomplish this feat?

Ultimately, that is for the leaders of Massachusetts to determine, but we have a set of policy recommendations that we believe, if implemented aggressively and deliberately, would get us most of the way there:

1. Give Green Checks to the Citizens and Businesses of Massachusetts

   Right now, the market is not functioning properly. As stated in our science section, the continued use of fossil fuels will lead to the "collapse of much of civilization." Yet these enormous societal costs are not accurately reflected in the price of fossil fuels.

   To correct this market error, each month the state will provide residents and businesses with "Green Checks": rebates given to citizens and business drawn from fees placed on the production of fossil fuels in MA and the importation of fossil-fuels into our state.

   By enacting this policy, residents and businesses will be compensated for the present and future harms of climate change, while providing renewable electricity the opportunity to stand on more equal market footing with societal-destructive fossil fuels.

   To ensure that the invisible hand of the market operates correctly, maximum emissions limits should be set in 2015 at levels below current emissions of coal plants, and in 2020 below current emissions levels of natural gas facilities.

2. Provide State-Backed Green Jobs Bonds to Retrofit Every Building in the State and Finance Renewable Energy.

   While energy efficiency and renewable energy are sound long-term investments, many citizens and businesses in our state are unaware of the payback that can be achieved from these investments, and/or unable to provide the needed up-front capital. As a result, the state should leverage its bonding authority to help citizens and businesses make the necessary efficiency upgrades and renewable electricity generation investments that will earn them money in the long-term and reduce our emissions now.

   These Green Jobs Bonds will create jobs in Massachusetts today that will revitalize the economy while promoting an economically, politically, and socially stable world by immediately and substantially reducing our emissions of dangerous greenhouse gases.

   To ensure that newly constructed building do not later need to undergo the same upgrades, we will follow WA, OR, and CA and enact Architecture 2030's Challenge - adopted by the American Institute of Architects, US Conference of Mayors and National Governors Association, requiring all new buildings built after 2030 to be net zero energy.

3. Promote Clean Air, Green Cars, and a Smart Grid

   The electricity grid is a relic of the 20th century. In an era of instant communications, utilities rely upon costumers to inform them when they have lost electricity. The "Smart Grid" will allow for real-time pricing and will permit market signals to shift supply to times when there is more demand.

   Like the electricity system, cars are also outdated, relying upon 20th Century technologies. The internal combustion engine inefficiently consumes fossil fuels that threaten global stability. Conveniently, the batteries of electric cars can serve as back-ups for intermittent periods of clean sources, bringing our electricity grid into the 21st century and shifting cars away from oil to clean electricity and reducing air pollution.

   To accelerate this needed and beneficial shift, the state should levy Antiquated System Upgrade Fees on all new non-electric vehicles registered in the state. The Antiquated System Upgrade Fees will be used to fund the deployment of the Smart Grid. For maximum effectiveness, all new appliances sold in MA should be "smart" by 2015.