HARRISBURG – Sen. Joe Pittman (R-41) released the following statement after the Commonwealth Court granted a preliminary injunction today that delays Pennsylvania’s entry into the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) pending further court action:
“The consumers of electricity in this commonwealth and the working families in our energy sector received important news, positive news, today because the Commonwealth Court has just put a stop to Gov. Wolf’s proposed carbon tax, also known as RGGI. This carbon tax would make the production of electricity in our commonwealth even more expensive and uncompetitive compared to the rest of the states. That is a direct threat to working families in this commonwealth and a direct burden on every consumer of electricity in this commonwealth. So, it was a significant victory. I expect there will be more appeals and more legal gymnastics to occur, but this was very important because it speaks to the importance of co-equal governance, it speaks to the reality that the governor cannot unilaterally impose a tax and it speaks to the need for us to protect energy workers in our commonwealth. This is an important victory, but there are many more steps to go in the process. But I’m very encouraged by what we received from the Commonwealth Court today. My hope is that the governor takes a step back and truly engages the legislature in coming up with a proper energy policy in this commonwealth.”
Video of Sen. Joe Pittman’s statement can be found here.
Contact: Jeremy Dias jdias@pasen.gov