On Tuesday, May 20, PEC President Tom Gilbert wrote to members of the Pennsylvania delegation, urging them to defend clean energy programs and the EPA’s budget as lawmakers consider cuts that would have direct impacts on Pennsylvanians.
Dear Senators and Representatives:
I am writing on behalf of the Pennsylvania Environmental Council (PEC) urging you to oppose cuts to clean energy funding and incentive programs funded through the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), as well as the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) budget.
Since 1970, PEC has been working to protect and restore Pennsylvania’s environment by working directly with partners from business, industry, labor, and communities. We support an ‘all of the above’ energy transition that includes a wide range of pathways including renewables, nuclear, carbon and methane capture, geothermal, and more. We also support development of technologies like storage, transmission infrastructure improvement, energy efficiency, and distributed generation. All of these technologies make our grid more diverse and resilient, help consumers and businesses save money, and create new jobs.
Pennsylvania and American competitiveness are predicated not just on what we’re doing today, but how we’re preparing for tomorrow. Innovation is fundamental, particularly in Pennsylvania. Our businesses and industry are striving to improve efficiencies and stay viable in markets where metrics like embedded emissions in manufactured goods are inescapable. Pennsylvania’s traditional dominance in industry is well known, but it’s also rooted in older practices and technologies that now must compete on new playing fields.
For example, nearly $400 million in funding approved under the IRA for the new RISE PA industrial decarbonization grant program is in jeopardy. The loss of these funds would impede the ability of industries in Pennsylvania to adopt new technologies that make them more competitive while reducing harmful emissions.
Reporting has shown that, based on the IRA’s programs, companies have planned to invest more than $843 billion in improvements and new build projects across the country. We need this investment in all areas of Pennsylvania. That critical investment, including the creation of jobs and local tax benefits, however, is thrown into jeopardy if cuts are made to the IRA. And it will impact all Pennsylvanians. Multiple analyses (Energy Innovation, CEBA and Rhodium Group, as examples) find that elimination of these programs would quickly raise energy costs for residential and business consumers.
We are also deeply concerned about the proposed cuts to the budget for the EPA, which would jeopardize $120 million in federal funding to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection including basic support for Air Quality, Water Quality, Safe Drinking Water, Radiation Protection, Storage Tanks, and related grants to support programs and projects in communities that literally save lives. Whether proactively addressing flooding, plugging abandoned oil and gas wells, or sustaining our state’s hazardous sites program, this funding is essential to programs that protect Pennsylvanians.
Our state cannot lead without moving forward. We should not cede progress made with investments that have already proved beneficial to our state many times over, and that are poised to accelerate those returns in the years to come. Retreating will imperil economic growth, environmental improvement, and job opportunities for current and future Pennsylvanians.
Again, we ask that you oppose any proposed cuts to these programs. Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Tom Gilbert
President
Pennsylvania Environmental Council
*Photo credit: Nicholas T, CC BY 2.0