(The Center Square) – The latest proposal to usher in the state’s green energy transition will mean more tax credit programs, rebates and permit reforms.
The “Lightning Plan,” as it’s called, courts developers through state kickbacks for building “reliable energy sources,” regional hydrogen projects and sustainable aviation fuel production. Consumers would get revamped rebates for household energy efficiency measures, and rural communities could pool resources to lower costs.
There’s also a call for a new siting board devoted to approving projects, support for the governor’s carbon tax program, and expansion of alternative energy credits.
But earning the backing of Senate Republican leadership – necessary for any policy proposal to reach Gov. Josh Shapiro’s desk – is an uphill battle. This is especially true since he won’t drop a lawsuit to join the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a multi-state carbon tax estimated to nearly quadruple energy costs.
A commonwealth court ruling deemed the executive order pushing Pennsylvania into the program unconstitutional. Shapiro wants the state Supreme Court to overturn that decision – unless lawmakers pass his Pennsylvania-specific version, which he says will lower costs.
The well-worn dynamic doesn’t deter the governor, however. Flanked by labor leaders, business groups and clean energy advocates, Shapiro said Thursday that his plans have brought them all together after years of diametrically opposed viewpoints.
“If legislators choose to do nothing, they’re actually choosing to be less competitive,” he said. “They’re choosing to let other states pass us by.”
Indeed, the desire to lower energy costs extends across party lines, though the solutions do not. Earlier Thursday, Republican Sen. Gene Yaw unveiled a bill meant to stabilize the power grid as the transition from fossil fuels to wind and solar power leaves it vulnerable to failure.
“Since 2019, there have been no new investments in baseload electric generation in Pennsylvania,” he said. “To maintain our position as the energy powerhouse of the mid-Atlantic and meet growing energy demands, we need to be investing in new generation capacity now.”
Yaw, chairman of the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee, has also led efforts to invalidate the regulations – currently mired in the governor’s lawsuit – that would allow Pennsylvania to join the regional carbon tax program, as well as create hydrogen hubs and a framework for carbon capture and sequestration.
And while, like Shapiro, he supports an “all-of-the-above” energy plan, charging gas plants and industrial sites for the emissions their facilities create isn’t part of it.
“The questionable agreements and feel-good programs being considered as part of the governor’s energy plan are nothing but a Band-Aid for a broken bone,” he said on social media. “Until he abandons RGGI, it is difficult to take seriously any statement claiming he wants to ease the power deficit PA is facing.”