House Bill 501, enacting the Pennsylvania Reliable Energy Sustainability Standards (PRESS), was approved at the June 2nd meeting of the House Environmental and Natural Resource Protection Committee. The Pennsylvania Environmental Council issued the following statement on today’s vote:
“We commend the Committee for advancing HB 501, which expands Pennsylvania’s outdated energy portfolio standards to include more low- and zero-carbon-emitting power generation sources. As part of the governor’s Lightning plan, the new PRESS standards will help to diversify our energy sources, providing reliable and affordable electricity to consumers while supporting development of renewables and clean energy technologies within Pennsylvania.”
John Walliser, Senior VP for Legal and Government Affairs, offered testimony on PRESS in June of 2024, and submitted comments on the reintroduced legislation in advance of a hearing last month. Updating the state’s 2004 Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards law is among the key recommendations in PEC’s 2019 deep decarbonization pathways report.