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03/28/2024 12:29 PM
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/Legis/CSM/showMemoPublic.cfm?chamber=H&SPick=20190&cosponId=32535
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House of Representatives
Session of 2019 - 2020 Regular Session

MEMORANDUM

Posted: October 7, 2020 03:49 PM
From: Representative James B. Struzzi, II and Rep. Pam Snyder
To: All House members
Subject: Stand up for PA Jobs and Families: RGGI Regulation Disapproval Comment Resolution
 
Governor Wolf has chosen to proceed with promulgating his regulation forcing Pennsylvania to join the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) despite our chamber and the Senate voting in overwhelming bipartisan fashion for HB 2025.  HB 2025, which the Governor recently vetoed, defined the process by which the Administration would have to engage with the General Assembly and obtain its consent before joining a greenhouse gas cap-and-trade program like RGGI, which would significantly reshape our energy economy.
 
The Governor’s proposed regulation will soon be open for public comment.  We will shortly introduce a resolution which outlines the Governor’s lack of statutory authority to join RGGI through regulation.  If adopted by the House, the resolution will be sent to the Independent Regulatory Review Commission (IRRC) as our chamber’s official public comment noting our disapproval of the proposed regulation and urging IRRC to echo our concerns.
 
If Pennsylvania joins RGGI, we will immediately see thousands of family sustaining jobs lost in our Commonwealth due to the closure of coal-fired electric generating units and older natural gas plants.  This would lead to serious economic repercussions to our state, as millions of dollars in local and state tax revenue will be lost.  The jobs that we lose will go directly to our neighboring states who are not a part of RGGI, and our remaining natural gas-fired plants will be put at a competitive disadvantage because of our participation.
 
A carbon tax such as RGGI can only be initiated by the General Assembly.  This initiative is a major energy and fiscal policy decision which must be made by the legislative branch of government.  The Governor does not have the unilateral authority to take this action.
 
Please join us in sponsoring this important resolution. Our residents and businesses cannot afford this carbon tax, particularly now as we are attempting to emerge from the economic recession created by the COVID outbreak.



Introduced as HR1088