South Lancaster News

HARRISBURG – Senator Scott Martin (R-Lancaster) issued the following statement today responding to Governor Josh Shapiro’s announcement that he would pursue a Pennsylvania carbon tax similar to the one ruled unconstitutional by the Commonwealth Court recently.

"For over a year, Senate Republicans have urged Governor Shapiro to set aside the disastrous Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) and pursue an energy strategy that puts Pennsylvania families and job-creators first and ensures we have a safe, reliable electricity grid," stated Senator Martin.

He continued, "It is difficult to move forward on Pennsylvania energy decisions when the governor is continuing to fight us in court to enact a policy that takes away jobs and pushes energy prices even higher."

Senator Martin also expressed concerns about the similarities between Governor Shapiro's new proposal and RGGI, stating, "The plan presented by the governor today bears many similarities to RGGI and raises many of the same concerns."

In order for progress to be made, Senator Martin emphasized that Governor Shapiro needs to take a specific action, saying, "For us to count today’s announcement as any kind of progress, Governor Shapiro needs to withdraw his appeal to the Commonwealth Court’s decision that RGGI is unconstitutional."

Senator Martin concluded by highlighting the challenges in negotiating under the current circumstances, stating, "We cannot negotiate in good faith when we’re being held hostage to the governor’s demands for higher energy taxes, closure of power plants, job losses, and a less reliable grid."

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