Pennsylvania Moves to Exit Regional Carbon-Trading Market
(Bloomberg) -- Democratic Pennsylvania Governor Shapiro signed into law a bill to exit a regional market meant to cut greenhouse gas emissions, just over three years after the state joined the initiative to flight climate change.
Both chambers of the state legislature voted to end the state’s participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative as part of the state’s budget, which cut funding for the program. The bill unwinds a 2019 decision by Pennsylvania’s former governor to join the cap-and-trade program.
The move comes as Shapiro pushes to transform Pennsylvania into a major hub for artificial intelligence. The AI boom is propelling the biggest buildout of natural gas-fired power plants in years, and Pennsylvania has long been a top producer of the fossil fuel. Consumer Energy Alliance, which represents businesses and fossil fuel generators, applauded the move, saying it will help reduce escalating utility bills, while climate group Evergreen Action called RGGI the state’s strongest tool for lowering energy costs.
While the exit is seen by some as a capitulation to Republicans and the fossil fuel industry, Shapiro said it removes a key barrier.
“For years the Republicans who’ve led the Senate have used RGGI as an excuse to stall substantive conversations about energy production; today that excuse is gone,” Shapiro said during a press conference minutes before signing the budget. “I am looking forward to aggressively pushing for policies that create more jobs in the energy sector, bring more clean energy onto our grid and reduce the cost of energy for all Pennsylvanians.”
(Updates with bill approved by Governor Shapiro throughout.)
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