Friend,

Governor Shapiro and the state legislature reached agreement on a state budget. 

We’re relieved that people who depend on critical social services will finally get the support they need, but we oppose this deal because it protects the profits of oil and gas billionaires by locking in higher electricity prices for working families.

Senate Republicans have fought for years to prevent Pennsylvania from participating in a multi-state program that cuts pollution and energy costs and would have brought in over a billion dollars to invest in our communities. It’s called the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative or RGGI.

But rather than continuing to fight Republican legislators who held the state budget hostage, Governor Shapiro surrendered to their demands and is walking away from over a billion dollars a year that would have gone toward lowering energy bills and cleaning up pollution.

Now, it’s on us to hold him and every lawmaker who supported this bad deal accountable. 

Take a few minutes to send the governor and lawmakers a message telling them that Pennsylvanians shouldn’t have to choose between critical social services and being able to afford their energy bills. Tell them we expected leadership, not one more concession to oil and gas billionaires.  

There are a few positives for the environment in the state budget.

• It continues to invest in the Solar for Schools program that lowers schools’ energy bills and pollution
• The budget unlocks federal funding under the Solar for All program, which will make low-cost solar available to low-income families.
• And it will help provide some oversight for our grid operator on energy.

These are bright spots, but they don’t come close to the kind of clean energy investments that RGGI would have meant for Pennsylvania.

Don’t get me wrong – I understand that when you have a divided government, it means you sometimes need to compromise. But Pennsylvania’s working families still can’t afford their electric bills. We still have a pollution problem. 

If we want our state leaders to fix these problems, Governor Shapiro and every state lawmaker who voted for this deal need to hear from their constituents today.

They need to know that we won’t accept this failure as our future.

They need to hear that we deserve and demand affordable energy bills and clean air and water that are only possible if we shift to clean energy.

They need to know that we will be right back to work tomorrow fighting to pass policies that protect our environment and save Pennsylvanians money.

And we need them to stand there with us. 

Send a message right now to hold our leaders accountable and demand real solutions that lower costs and cut pollution.

Hundreds of our members spoke out and donated to this fight. Thank you. This is a massive setback, but we will never stop fighting for the future we all want for our families. 

In solidarity, 

Molly Parzen
Executive Director
Conservation Voters of PA

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Conservation Voters of PA
P.O. Box 2125
Philadelphia, PA 19103
United States