California’s Cap-and-Trade Program started out two decades ago as an innovative way to reduce carbon emissions: California sets a cap on the amount of greenhouse gases and then sells the right to pollute in the form of allowances. The money the state gets from auctioning allowances goes to programs that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, such as infill affordable housing and public transportation.

In practice, polluting companies lobbied for and won huge loopholes that allow for business as usual: giving away free allowances that continue pollution in communities already overburdened by toxic emissions. As we work toward Cap-and-Trade reauthorization, we have an opportunity to correct those mistakes and instead invest in housing, transportation, and environmental justice.