|
Friend, I have bad news.
|
Governor Wolf wants Pennsylvania to join the 11 other states in the northeast that are already benefiting from RGGI, but some of our state senators are beholden to big gas industries and are pushing back hard with SB 119, a bill that would block Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection from being able to join this program.
We need to stand up for this critical program that would improve our air quality and generate revenue to invest millions of dollars into our communities and public health. Send a message to your state senator right now urging them to vote against SB 119.
|
| TAKE ACTION |
After getting squashed in the Pennsylvania legislature last year, the horrible bill that would have taken away the state’s power to join a carbon reduction program to improve our air quality is back — and it could come up for a vote any day now.
If we’re ever going to clean up our air and stave off climate change, Pennsylvania has got to change course and start reducing carbon pollution with programs like the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). Not only would this program get companies to reduce their carbon emissions, but it would generate revenue that can be reinvested in programs that further reduce air pollution and benefit our communities and workers.
Having to pay to pollute isn’t popular with Big Polluters, and their lobbyists in Harrisburg are doing everything they can at this moment to pass SB 119 to make sure that doesn’t happen. We defeated this bill before and can do it again, but our senators need to hear from constituents like you right now to stand up to special interests.
Send a message to your senator and demand they stand up for clean air and reduced carbon pollution in Pennsylvania by voting AGAINST SB 119 >>
Pennsylvania consistently ranks in the top 5 states when it comes to greenhouse gas emissions and has the most premature deaths per capita caused by air pollution of any state. Our region’s dirty energy legacy has caused childhood asthma, low birth weights, and autism — and we know that people of color experience these impacts disproportionately. Linking to RGGI would cut carbon pollution by 25%, helping low-income communities have cleaner air so they can spend less money on expensive health care.
In addition to its climate and public health benefits, estimates show that RGGI would generate a net increase of more than 27,000 jobs — many of them sustainable, clean energy jobs — and it will add $1.9 billion to the state’s economy by 2030. By putting a price tag on pollution, RGGI incentivizes energy producers to turn away from fossil fuels, cuts carbon, and proceeds will create investments in much needed energy efficiency programs to help reduce energy costs overall.
Eleven other states are already part of RGGI and are reaping the benefits. It’s time for Pennsylvania to tap into this record of success, invest in sustainable jobs in our flourishing clean energy sector, and reduce our carbon pollution. But to make that happen, the legislature needs to stop its political posturing and drop this reckless bill immediately.
Urge your state senator to support RGGI and the benefits it would bring to our Commonwealth by voting NO on SB 119 >>
Thanks for all that you do.
Josh McNeil
Executive Director
Conservation Voters of PA
|
