Today, the Pennsylvania Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee voted to pass a bill that would effectively block Pennsylvania from participating in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). Senate Bill 1508 was introduced Friday and with today’s passage through committee, now advances to the full Senate for consideration. 

In response, Evergreen Action State Program Director Justin Balik released the following statement: 

“Blocking Pennsylvania from participating in RGGI would cost the Commonwealth nearly $1 billion in federal investment, sending jobs to other states and jacking up energy bills for Pennsylvanians. 

“Red tape and lawsuits have already delayed participation for far too long. And today, with little notice and behind closed doors, Republicans rushed this dangerous bill through committee in their latest attempt to stop clean energy jobs from coming to Pennsylvania. It’s no wonder that Senate Republicans didn’t want to give anyone time to even read this bill, since it would set Pennsylvania’s clean energy progress back by more than a decade.

“Full participation in RGGI is crucial to meeting the governor’s climate goals, maintaining economic competitiveness in the region, and safeguarding public health. It’s time for Governor Shapiro and his administration to stand up against baseless Republican attacks on RGGI, fully embrace their role in successful implementation, and ensure Pennsylvania is well-positioned to take advantage of federal climate investments to create new jobs and lower energy costs across the Commonwealth.”

Last year, Synapse Energy Economics issued findings from a report independently produced for Evergreen Collaborative and Ceres exploring the economic benefits of Pennsylvania’s participation in RGGI. The Synapse report finds that Pennsylvania’s participation in RGGI will result in: 

• An estimated $1.5 billion reduction in energy costs for Pennsylvania’s residents, businesses, and industrial sector.
• An average annual net decrease of $24 in utility bills for households.
• $930 million of additional federal funding for Pennsylvania through Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) tax credits for solar, wind, and storage projects.

Additionally, RGGI will help Pennsylvania meet Gov. Josh Shapiro’s goal of achieving 30 percent renewable electricity by 2030 and net-zero emissions in the state by 2050.