What is the Clean Heat Standard?
The Clean Heat Standard is an attempt to get Vermonters to use less fossil fuels. A "Clean Heat Credit" is earned when something is done to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the thermal sector. A “Clean Heat Fee” is paid when someone purchases propane, kerosene, heating oil or natural gas.
How much will the Clean Heat Fee be?
The first official estimate was 70 cents per gallon. But a revised analysis shows it is likely to be much more. A taxpayer funded study by the consulting firm NV5 shows that a fee as high as $4 per gallon may be necessary to comply with the Vermont Global Warming Solutions Act (GWSA).
What is the GWSA?
The GWSA is a 2020 Vermont law that requires greenhouse gas emissions to be reduced by 40% by 2030 and 80% by 2050. These reductions are mandates, not goals. Failure to cut emissions will likely lead to a lawsuit.
When will Vermonters pay the fee?
The fee for heating your home with oil and gas will only apply if and when the Vermont Legislature allows the “Clean Heat Standard” to go into effect. They are expected to vote in January 2025. If that happens, the Public Utility Commission has determined that the earliest possible date that the Clean Heat Fee could go into effect is January 1, 2026.
How will the program work?
Vermonters who continue to use fuel oil, kerosene, natural gas, and propane to heat their home will pay the Clean Heat Fee. The fee will be collected and paid by whoever brought the fuel into Vermont. This is known as the “obligated party.”
Will all fuel dealers collect the fee?
The fee is paid by whoever brings the fuel into Vermont, regardless of the company's size or the amount of fuel sold. Nearly all of the “obligated parties” will be small retail providers of heating fuel. Since there are no refineries in Vermont and very few wholesale distributors, even the smallest fuel company will be considered “obligated” under the law.
What is a “Clean Heat Credit,” and what is it worth?
Sales of renewable liquid and solid fuels, weatherization, wood stoves, and electric-powered heat pumps are among the products and services that will generate credits. Nearly every fuel dealer will need them, but it isn’t clear where they will get them or what they are worth or until the program is fully designed.
Who supports this law?
A majority of Democratic lawmakers in Montpelier, several lobbying organizations, and some of the largest sellers of fossil fuels in Vermont. Click here to see lawmakers who voted for it.
Who opposed it?
Hundreds of locally owned fuel suppliers and tens of thousands of their customers. Click here to see lawmakers who voted against it.
I heard that this fee is only for “big oil?"
Nope. That is a different law. The Vermont legislature did pass a law in 2024 that requires major oil producers and refiners from outside Vermont to pay for damages related to climate change. This is not that. This is a totally different regulation. This is a fee on Vermonters who use oilheat, kerosene and propane to incentivize them to use less fossil fuels.
THE VERMONT CLEAN HEAT STANDARD