Vermont ratepayers have forked over hundreds of millions to Efficiency Vermont since 2000, and what do we have to show for it? Not a cooler climate, not drastically lower emissions—just one of the most expensive carbon reduction programs in the country… and a finger-wagging from the local lobbyist for the Sierra Club.

As Sen. Anne Watson (D–Washington County) pushes the Legislature to shovel even more taxpayer money toward Efficiency Vermont to rescue the smoldering remains of the failed Clean Heat Standard, it’s time for a little math.

In 2019 alone, Vermont utilities collected over $57 million from Vermonters through the Energy Efficiency Charge (EEC)—a mandatory surcharge that shows up on every monthly electric bill. That money funded efficiency programs that, according to Efficiency Vermont’s own reports, saved about 36,500 megawatt-hours of electricity. That’s roughly equivalent to 18,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide avoided, using EPA’s own math.

Sounds good, right?

Until you divide the money by the emissions avoided.

That’s more than $3,100 per ton of CO₂ “saved.”

To put that in context:

• The EPA’s social cost of carbon—a value assigned to the economic harm caused by emitting a ton of CO₂—is $51.
• The RGGI (Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative) allows power plants to buy carbon credits for about $15 per ton.

So while power companies can offset a ton of carbon for the price of a couple of craft beers, Vermonters are being told they must pay the equivalent of a used Honda Civic… for the same ton… to fund programs most people will never benefit from.

🕳️ The Carbon Shell Game

Here’s the part that really stings: Carbon credits generated by Vermont’s ratepayer-funded efficiency programs are often sold to out-of-state buyers—like utilities in Massachusetts—so they can claim progress toward their climate goals.

In other words, Vermont pays for the reductions, Massachusetts gets the credit, and Efficiency Vermont keeps the money flowing.

Meanwhile, Vermont’s own emissions are rising. The state has missed its emissions targets year after year, despite over $700 million collected since 2000 through the EEC. And the Legislature’s answer? Give Efficiency Vermont more money.

Because nothing says accountability like rewarding failure with a raise.

💸 The Carbon Tax with No Accountability

Let’s be clear: the Energy Efficiency Charge is a carbon tax in everything but name.

• You don’t choose to pay it.
• It’s tied to your energy use.
• The money is spent on emissions reduction programs.
• And the Legislature gets to say it’s not a tax because they let the Public Utility Commission impose it through regulatory authority.

That’s not just misleading. It may be unconstitutional.

The Vermont Constitution requires that taxes be imposed by elected lawmakers, for clear public benefit. But instead, the Legislature handed that power to unelected regulators, who send your money to a private nonprofit. No vote. No budget line. No real accountability.

And if you’re thinking, “Well, at least Efficiency Vermont says thank you to the people footing the bill…” — don’t bother looking.

We checked.
Not one “thank you” to Vermont’s ratepayers appears in over two decades of Efficiency Vermont reports. Not a line. Not a sentence. Not a nod.

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🚨 Enter Senate Bill S.65 — Clean Heat Standard in Disguise

Just as Vermont’s Clean Heat Standard collapsed under public scrutiny, the Legislature has quietly advanced Senate Bill S.65 — a bill that doesn’t say “carbon tax,” but still aims to give Efficiency Vermont expanded authority to run new electrification, transportation, and energy storage programs. And yes — they get to keep collecting from your electric bill to fund it.

It’s not just a bureaucratic reshuffle. It’s a doubling down on the same unaccountable, ratepayer-funded governance model that’s already charging over $3,000 per ton of carbon reduction.

This time, lawmakers want to give Efficiency Vermont:

• Legal control over new programs in heating, cooling, and even transportation
• A guaranteed annual budget through 2030, tied to inflation
• Continued authority to collect money through the Energy Efficiency Charge, and now possibly carbon credit sales and direct taxpayer dollars

But not once does the bill mention a public vote, a tax, or a line-item appropriation.

This isn’t just a workaround — it’s an end-run around democracy.

❓ The Billion-Dollar Question

After nearly 25 years and well over $700 million spent, it’s fair to ask:

Why didn’t Vermont just buy carbon credits directly on the open market?

With the same money, Vermont could have offset every ton of carbon the state emits for nearly a decade, using the same tools already used by utilities and other states. No surcharges. No bureaucracy. No climate guilt-trip lectures.

Instead, Vermonters were forced to subsidize the most expensive, least efficient workaround imaginable—while politicians still claim Vermont needs more funding and bolder action.

Maybe it’s not about carbon at all.
Maybe it’s about keeping the system alive—no matter how expensive, ineffective, or ungrateful it becomes.

And you were wondering why Vermont is unaffordable?

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Dave Soulia | FYIVT

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