SEATTLE — In just two years, Washington’s keystone policy to cut planet-warming greenhouse gases has raised more than $3 billion, but the question of where that money goes has been the epicenter of intense debate.

The money comes from polluters. The 2021 Climate Commitment Act requires the worst across the state to buy allowances in quarterly auctions, one for every metric ton of emissions they pump into the atmosphere. Over decades, the state will ratchet down the number of allowances sold, cutting the total number of emissions. The money raised by the auctions will all be earmarked for projects meant to guard against or recover from the worsening effects of climate change.

But the manner in which the state raises the cash has long been a pressure point for critics of the bill. They’ve called it a slush fund and an illegal gas tax, and have often focused on a lack of detail as to where that money is heading. They even used such language to try to repeal the policy – an effort that voters roundly rejected last year.

The questions swirling around the state’s finances now have more answers than ever before. Officials with the state Department of Ecology on Wednesday released their most comprehensive report yet on where CCA money has been spent, all neatly packaged in a publicly available dashboard.

The newly available dashboard maps out all sorts of climate projects throughout the state. You can find expenditures plotted on a map of Washington, or sort the data by fiscal year, agency, region and more.

“The Climate Commitment Act is moving us toward a low-carbon economy and helping our most vulnerable communities adapt to the realities of climate change,” said state Ecology Director Casey Sixkiller. “Having detailed, transparent information about CCA spending ensures that lawmakers can continue to guide those investments wisely.”

Each project you find will include certain details, such as the year legislators appropriated the money (and in what amount); a description of the work itself; whether it’s designed to help communities overburdened by climate change (a requirement for at least 35% of the money); and an estimate of how many tons of greenhouse gas emissions it’s expected to reduce.

Most of the money collected, about $2.8 billion, has been appropriated by the Legislature, meaning it’s earmarked for specific projects. And with the upcoming legislative session, lawmakers are sure to carve up more of the funds. So far, about $1.5 billion has actually been spent across 37 different state agencies, said Caroline Halter, a spokesperson for Ecology.

In all, the dashboard outlines more than 3,600 projects across the state, which are expected to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 8.6 million tons over the lifespan of that work.

“That’s the equivalent of taking 40% of all gas and diesel vehicles in Washington off the road for a whole year,” Halter said.

About $330 million from the CCA funds will work directly to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Among them: a $7 million Green Transportation Grant, dated this year, to fund charging stations and other infrastructure for electric buses across the metropolitan area. The work funded from this grant is expected to cut more than 38,000 tons of emissions by weaning public transportation off fossil fuels, the dashboard indicates.

Other projects are meant to lay a foundation for future reductions, Halter said.

One from this year in Spokane, worth $1.2 million, is dedicated toward energy audits for public buildings, to help owners identify and understand opportunities to make the buildings more energy-efficient, according to the dashboard. Large buildings account for about a quarter of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions.

About $850 million worth of projects are designed in one way or another to benefit communities classified as overburdened. These communities generally suffer damage from climate change, such as flooding, record temperatures and poor air quality, earlier and harder than most.

Often, overburdened communities are the focus of climate resilience work, meant to help adapt to the warming atmosphere. These projects would include things such as cooling systems in schools or filtration devices for wildfire smoke.

Take the $6 million King County Air Quality Mitigation project as an example. The project, dated this year, is designed to improve air quality for homes, community buildings and schools in south King County. This means planting trees and distributing portable air cleaners, according to the dashboard.

The biggest chunk of money out of the CCA coffer, $522 million, went to the state Department of Transportation, which makes sense given that transportation accounts for about 40% of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions.

The Department of Commerce clocks in at second place, receiving $489 million, and the Department of Natural Resources takes the bronze medal at $168 million. Other state agencies such as Ecology, the Department of Health and the University of Washington are lower on the list.

Most projects have multiple benefits, Halter said.

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