Utah Legislature: Carbon credit bill clears committee hurdle

SALT LAKE CITY — After languishing in the Senate Rules Committee, a bill that would officially allow communities to sell carbon credits was approved Tuesday by another committee.

SB128's sponsor, Sen. Ross Romero said several Utah communities already take advantage of the opportunity to generate revenue from carbon credits, but his bill would add "legislative clarity" to current law.

"Without clear legislative approval, they won't invest if they don't know if the Legislature would undermine them later," the Salt Lake City Democrat said.

Currently, several landfills in Utah collect and pressurize methane gas to produce electricity, and then sell the resulting carbon credits on national exchanges, generating revenue for the communities.

Last year a similar measure failed on the Senate floor.

— Josh Smith