A compromise that sacrifices Pennsylvania's participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative to end the commonwealth's four-month budget stalemate would be shortsighted and harmful, environmental and clean energy advocates say.
Gov. Josh Shapiro and lawmakers negotiating a spending plan are tight-lipped about what is and isn't on the table. But Republicans, who control the state Senate and have rejected Democratic budget proposals, have staunchly opposed the carbon reduction program.
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Now, environmentalists claim, Senate Republicans are refusing to act on a budget as schools and social programs desperately wait for state funding until Shapiro and Democratic lawmakers agree to repeal the regulations entering Pennsylvania into RGGI.
"As the governor himself has often said, this is a false choice between a healthy environment and our economy, and now our environmental champions in Harrisburg, many of whom are standing behind me today, must resist," Molly Parzens, executive director of Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania, said at a news conference Thursday.
A spokesperson for Shapiro said Thursday his office would not comment on budget negotiations. Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman's (R-Indiana) office did not respond to a request for comment.
RGGI aims to reduce climate-warming carbon dioxide emissions from power plants by requiring the companies that own them to invest in clean energy projects. The multi-state program has been in place in about a dozen mid-Atlantic and northeastern states for more than a decade.
It has cut carbon emissions from power plants in half by placing an enforceable declining cap on the amount of climate pollution that fossil fuel power plants are allowed to emit. Participating states have seen more than $9 billion in investments and it's projected that consumers will save $20 billion in energy costs as a result.
Former Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf entered Pennsylvania into the program in 2019 by executive order. Republicans, who controlled both chambers of the General Assembly at the time, argued it infringed on their legislative authority and argued it amounts to an illegal tax on energy.
The state Supreme Court heard arguments last May from the Shapiro administration that controlling carbon emissions is within the state Department of Environmental Protection's broad authority to control air pollution. Lawyers for Senate Republicans said the regulations encroach into policy decisions about the state's energy economy that are the domain of lawmakers, not the executive branch.
A decision in the case could come at any time.
Robert Routh, an attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council, said at the news conference in Philadelphia that withdrawing from RGGI before the court's decision would be shortsighted, as the decision will not abrogate the administration's ability to regulate emissions.
"Regardless of how the court rules, the Supreme Court decision will affect how Pennsylvania can design rules to control climate pollution under the Air Pollution Control Act, not whether the state can do so," Routh said.
"And there is, of course, the possibility that the court finds in favor of RGGI, upholds the constitutionality of the rule as currently designed, and delivers a massive victory for Pennsylvanians that will lower costs, cut pollution and create jobs," Routh said. "I urge people to recognize that giving away this possibility at the goal line would be a costly mistake."
On the 100th day of the impasse last month, House Minority Leader Jesse Topper, R-Bedford, told reporters that budget discussions were outside the realm of economic reality in Pennsylvania. GOP lawmakers have objected to Shapiro's proposal to spend down the state's budget surplus and dip into its $7 billion rainy day fund, arguing that doing so ignores a structural deficit.
To avoid that, the state needs sustained economic growth, and Topper argued the way to achieve that is by unleashing Pennsylvania's fossil fuel resources.
"What we have underneath our feet in terms of natural resources would make any state in the union green with envy, and yet we continue to miss our opportunities," Topper said, arguing that RGGI is the cause of instability in the state's energy markets.
"We have to get out of RGGI once and for all," he said, noting House Republicans planned to file a discharge motion to force a floor vote on the Senate's bill to repeal RGGI regulations.
The same day, House Democrats ratched up pressure on Senate GOP leaders before passing a $50.6 billion spending plan, in a response to the Senate's flat funding proposal in July. Majority Leader Matt Bradford, D-Montgomery, told reporters that Democrats were willing to compromise on "every single issue."
"There are 102 Democrats that would be heartbroken by almost every one of those compromises, but we will do them because government must be open and it must work," Bradford said.
Asked whether the openness to compromise extended to the Senate RGGI bill, Bradford acknowledged two areas where his caucus would not budget. One, he said, was taxpayer funded private school tuition vouchers.
The other: "No, we're not getting out of RGGI without taking care of our environment, period full stop."
Pennsylvania Capital-Star is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Pennsylvania Capital-Star maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Tim Lambert for questions: info@penncapital-star.com.
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