The Transportation and Climate Initiative Program (TCI-P) will not be part of Connecticut’s two-year state budget, Gov. Ned Lamont and Democratic leaders in the General Assembly said Friday.

A bill for the regional cap-and-trade program is still pending on the Senate’s calendar, but it does not have enough votes to pass because it would raise the price of gasoline, according to Senate President Martin Looney. The bill is unlikely to come up for vote before the legislative session ends Wednesday.

Lamont signed a memorandum of understanding in December, along with Massachusetts, Rhode Island and D.C., to join TCI-P with a goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles by 26% from 2022 to 2032.

Not holding a vote on the bill is an abdication of the legislature’s responsibility to meet the state’s climate commitments, Charles Rothenberger, attorney for Save the Sound, said at a press conference in Hartford on Saturday.

“The legislature can still lead on climate by getting TCI over the finish line this session,” Rothenberger said. “Let’s call a vote and get every senator on the record. Constituents deserve to know where their senator stands on clean air, good jobs and infrastructure.”

The bill outlines how to invest Connecticut’s proceeds from the auction of emissions allowances — starting at a projected $89 million in 2023 and increasing to up to $117 million by 2032 — with at least 50% of this money going to communities overburdened by air pollution or underserved by the transportation system. In addition, it would establish an equity and environmental justice advisory board to counsel the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) and the Department of Transportation on TCI-P to ensure equitable outcomes. The bill passed the Environment Committee on a party line vote in March. (See TCI-P Bill Advances in Conn. General Assembly.)

Republican legislators and gasoline trade associations oppose TCI-P, saying it’s a “gas tax” in the form of potential pass-down costs from fuel suppliers to consumers. (See Conn. Officials Push Back on ‘Gas Tax’ Label of TCI-P.)

DEEP analysis shows TCI-P participation could boost gas prices by 5 cents/gallon beginning in 2023, assuming fuel suppliers choose to pass down 100% of allowance costs to consumers. Multiple consumer protection safeguards, including a cost-containment reserve, would kick in at 9 cents/gallon. One Republican said the 5- to 9-cent increase applies to the first year of TCI-P alone, with prices potentially rising by as much as 26 cents.