House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee Chairman Daryl Metcalfe (R-Butler) recently sent a letter to the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative Inc. Executive Committee stating that Gov. Tom Wolf does not have the authority to enter Pennsylvania into the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) without approval from the legislature.
“Allow me to state simply and unequivocally: Governor Wolf lacks the unilateral authority to join RGGI… Just as almost all of the states that make up RGGI have joined by enacting statutes, Pennsylvania law requires that in order for the governor to execute a carbon cap-and-trade program such as RGGI, explicit approval is required from our Commonwealth’s legislative branch,” Metcalfe wrote.
Wolf issued an executive order on Oct. 3, which directed the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to join RGGI, a group of nine Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states that establish a cap on total carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from electric power generation in their states.
“Welcoming Pennsylvania into your ranks without legislative approval would be foolish and harmful both to RGGI and our Commonwealth… This will leave both RGGI and Pennsylvania in an unwelcome state of limbo,” Metcalfe said. “It will complicate RGGI’s administration and likely take years to resolve. You will not be able to count on Pennsylvania’s participation in RGGI, but you will have to expend time and resources planning for it, nonetheless.”
In November, lawmakers introduced legislation that would require legislative authorization for Pennsylvania to impose a carbon tax or enter into a multi-state program. The bills have been referred to the House and Senate Environmental Resources and Energy committees.
“I respectfully request that you do not move forward with completing Pennsylvania’s proposed entry into RGGI, unless and until Governor Wolf obtains proper authority, by legislative action of the General Assembly, to link our Commonwealth with RGGI,” Metcalfe wrote. “If this does not occur, legal action will follow.”