While Washington argues, four states spent on fuel, clinics, pipes and cleanup
Washington switched on a fuel tax credit, Missouri funded rural clinics, Ohio paid for pipes, and California counted a decade of cleanup. State government spent the week on things you can touch.
- Washington's sustainable aviation fuel tax credit is now active after the industry reached 20 million gallons of annual production, paying $1 to $2 per gallon. m:…3642
- Missouri announced $55 million in new funding for rural healthcare, including $24.4 million to upgrade digital systems in rural clinics and hospitals. m:…1966
- Ohio awarded $17.5 million in federal Community Development Block Grant funding to 32 communities: $7.5 million for neighbourhood revitalisation and $10 million for critical infrastructure. m:…5001
- California has invested more than $700 million since 2016 cleaning up lead-contaminated soil near the former Exide facility, clearing 6,495 residential parcels and 7,818 parkways. m:…2196
- California has cleaned lead-contaminated soil at all identified schools, parks and childcare centres near the Exide site: 12 schools, 68 childcare centres and 5 parks. m:…2196
Four announcements, one pattern
Four governors made four announcements this week, and none of them was about an argument. Washington switched on a tax credit for sustainable aviation fuel. Missouri put $55 million into rural health care. Ohio sent $17.5 million to 32 communities for pipes and pavements. California reported a decade of cleanup around a shuttered battery plant. The pattern is the week's real news: state government spent the week on things you can touch. m:…3642 m:…1966 m:…5001 m:…2196
Fuel in Washington
Washington's sustainable aviation fuel tax credit is now live, Governor Ferguson announced, after the state's industry reached 20 million gallons of annual production. The Department of Ecology confirmed the threshold was met during the week of November 6. The credit pays $1 a gallon for jet fuel that cuts greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50% against conventional jet fuel, and up to $2 a gallon for fuels that do better. Ferguson said: "It's also in our DNA to make big bets on bold ideas, which is what we're doing with sustainable aviation fuels." m:…3642
The governor's office says Washington is the only state that offers both a sustainable aviation fuel tax credit and a clean fuel standard, and it expects sustainable aviation fuel to rise to more than half of global jet fuel use by 2050. The credit is a bet on scale: it only switched on once production hit the threshold, and it pays more the cleaner the fuel. m:…3642
Clinics in Missouri
Missouri's $55 million goes to rural health care, Governor Mike Kehoe announced, administered through the Rural Health Transformation Program and Healthier Communities Together. The largest slice, $24.4 million, upgrades digital systems in rural clinics and hospitals. Another $11 million recruits and retains rural health workers, $8 million funds digital innovation pilots, $5 million buys mobile health units, $2.5 million monitors high-risk pregnancies in the southeast and south-central parts of the state, and $1 million each goes to telehealth specialist access and to securing essential care certifications. Kehoe said: "With this new $55 million investment, we are putting tools directly into the hands of local providers." m:…1966
The state has been here before: it previously delivered $75 million in direct awards to 36 rural providers. Providers can learn how to apply at informational webinars on November 12 and November 17. m:…1966
Pipes in Ohio, soil in California
Ohio's $17.5 million is federal Community Development Block Grant money going to 32 communities: $7.5 million in neighbourhood revitalisation grants to 10 communities and $10 million in critical infrastructure grants to 22. The funded work is unglamorous and specific: water and sewer systems, flood and drainage improvements, road and sidewalk reconstruction, and park enhancements. Governor Mike DeWine said: "Reliable water and sewer systems, safe streets, and strong neighborhoods create communities where families can live their very best lives." m:…5001
California's cleanup around the shuttered Exide battery recycling facility in Vernon has now cleared lead-contaminated soil from every identified school, park and childcare centre nearby: 12 schools, 68 childcare centres and 5 parks. Since 2016 the state has spent more than $700 million on the cleanup, clearing 6,495 residential parcels and 7,818 parkways, or about 80% of the 8,000 eligible residential properties. Yana Garcia said: "Clean air, soil and water should be basic rights." m:…2196
The Department of Toxic Substances Control is still working through the remaining homes, and the Newsom administration has asked for the site to be added to the federal Superfund National Priorities List. The cleanup began with an order in 2002 requiring Exide to investigate releases from its operations, and the facility's operating permit was withdrawn in 2015, closing it. m:…2196
What it adds up to
None of these announcements changes a national debate. That is the point. The week's state news was money moving to specific places for specific jobs: a fuel credit that only switches on when production hits a threshold, clinic upgrades with a dollar figure attached to each piece, grants split between revitalisation and infrastructure, and a cleanup measured in parcels cleared. The open questions are practical too: how fuel producers claim the Washington credit, when Missouri's application deadlines land, which 32 Ohio communities got the grants, and whether the Exide site makes the Superfund list. m:…3642 m:…1966 m:…5001 m:…2196
What is still unresolved
- The specific application process for fuel producers to claim Washington's sustainable aviation fuel tax credit.
- The application deadlines for Missouri's $55 million rural healthcare funding rollout.
- The list of the 32 Ohio communities receiving the $17.5 million in grants.
- Whether the former Exide facility will be added to the federal Superfund National Priorities List.
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