Calling the costs associated with the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative an “energy tax”, Pennsylvania Rep. Joshua Kail (R-Beaver/Washington) said joining the regional carbon emission reduction program would quadruple consumer energy costs and cripple Pennsylvania families.
During a press conference on Tuesday, Kail, the House Republican Policy Committee Chairman, said the effects of Pennsylvania joining the initiative would amount to a $663 million energy tax in Gov. Josh Shapiro’s Fiscal Year 2023/2024 budget that would be passed down to consumers.
During the press conference, Kail said the House Republican Policy Committee will hold hearings next week on how an energy tax as part of the state entering into the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) would negatively impact the energy industry and state economy.
“During a time when families struggle to pay for basic necessities, Democrats want to take more of your hard-earned dollars,” said Kail. “Simply put: More taxes aren’t the solution, and they create a significant obstacle to opportunity.”
The RGGI is a cooperative effort between 11 states to cap and reduce CO2 emissions. Former Gov. Tom Wolf entered the agreement through action by the Department of Environmental Protection in 2022. Wolf, and now Shapiro, have argued that the provisions of the RGGI program fall under the state’s Clean Air Fund, and that the money raised is not a tax. Republicans have argued the funds are a tax and can only be enacted by the legislature which had previously voted not to join the initiative. The question of whether or not the state will join the initiative is the subject of several court cases.
This year’s state budget estimates $663 million will be come into the state through RGGI enforcement. Passed by the Democrat-led House, the budget is currently under consideration in the Republican-controlled Senate.
Kail said according to the Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) the money generated by the program would nearly quadruple electricity rates. Additionally, his office said, a 2022 report by FOX 56 in Wilkes-Barre found that auction clearing prices – the amount energy producers pay to by carbon emission “credits” to offset their emissions – were $3.24 per short ton. Those prices are expected to exceed $13 per short ton, the legislator said.
“Governor Josh Shapiro is playing political games while workers are losing their jobs,” Kail said. “If we want transformational change in our Commonwealth, we must end the political games, end the tax and spend status quo and provide hope for future Pennsylvanians to come.”