PA Governor Wolf Vetoes Legislation to Block Climate Action

HARRISBURG, P.A. – Governor Tom Wolf today vetoed House Bill 2025 which sought to strip the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) of its existing legal authority to regulate carbon pollution across all sectors and block Pennsylvania’s participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). 

The veto comes as two recent reports show the RGGI’s success in helping avoid hundreds of asthma attacks and other health harms, as well as its trajectory to save families and businesses in Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states more than $2 billion on their energy bills over the coming years.

A statement follows from Mark Szybist, Senior Attorney at NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council):  

“The governor’s veto of this anti-climate legislation comes as the climate crisis jeopardizes people’s health, safety, and livelihoods across the state and nation. A regional effort to cut harmful climate pollution could help jumpstart a more equitable, clean energy economy, put thousands of people to work, and cut energy bills for struggling Pennsylvanians. Fighting climate change isn’t about saving the planet – it’s about saving people, and Pennsylvania needs to get to work.”

For more, read: RGGI in the PA Legislature, or Welcome to the Terrordome, RGGI's Record of Success, and What PA Stands to Gain, HB 2025 Is About Posturing. PA Needs Good Carbon Policy.

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NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 3 million members and online activists. Since 1970, our lawyers, scientists, and other environmental specialists have worked to protect the world's natural resources, public health, and the environment. NRDC has offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Bozeman, MT, and Beijing. Visit us at www.nrdc.org and follow us on Twitter @NRDC.