PA House Republicans: Shapiro’s energy plan just another tax

On Monday, Pennsylvania House Republican leaders denounced Gov. Josh Shapiro’s energy plan, saying it would do little to help the state’s energy economy.

PA House Republican Leader Bryan Cutler (R-Lancaster) said the plan is a tax on families and businesses and will increase energy costs.

“If Gov. Shapiro really wants to have a conversation about getting stuff done and no longer losing out to Ohio, we are ready to have a conversation about how we can leverage our energy resources into making Pennsylvania a more competitive state,” Cutler said. “But what that conversation will not, and cannot, include are plans that will increase mandates on producers and consumers while increasing energy costs on Pennsylvania’s families and small businesses through new and higher energy taxes, and that is what the Shapiro energy plan will do.”

Shapiro’s plan consists of two bills he says will lower prices for consumers while protecting jobs and lowering emissions. The first bill, the Pennsylvania Climate Emissions Reduction (PACER) Act, would establish a state-specific cap-and-invest program, that would take Pennsylvania out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) and give the State control over its energy future. The second bill, the Pennsylvania Reliable Energy Sustainability Standard (PRESS), would require Pennsylvania to get 50 percent of its electricity from diverse energy resources by 2035, including 35 percent form clean energy sources like solar; 10 percent from sustainable sources like hydropower, and 5 percent from ultra-low emission forms of natural gas and other traditional fuels.

The energy plan is a continuation of left-wing environmental policies, House Republican Whip Tim O’Neal (R-Washington) said, and is not in the best interests of Pennsylvania’s residents.

“Simply put, the governor is proposing a tax on your utility bills,” O’Neal said. “This is just another example of the failed tax and spend policies directly contributing to rising costs and out-of-control inflation. Once again, it seems like the governor is more interested in appealing to voters in California than making life better for the people of Pennsylvania.”