Five environmental issues to watch this session
New York lawmakers this session will have to balance pressure to take action on climate policy with concerns about consumer cost in a critical election year.
Top New York Democratic lawmakers expressed a desire to keep moving forward on measures to slash emissions and reduce waste as the six-month session kicked off last week.
“There’s so much we need to do on climate this year,” said Sen. Liz Krueger (D-Manhattan), chair of the Senate Finance Committee. “We have no choice; we just have to keep upping the ante.”
Policy on waste, buildings and transportation are all on the docket this year.
Polluters pay up
Looming over session will be Hochul’s effort to implement the “cap and invest” program aimed at meeting the state’s climate goals. The program to cap pollution and require fuel distributors and large polluters to buy allowances at auction is expected to increase gas and home heating fuel costs.
Hochul’s agencies recommended a tax rebate as the first line of a consumer benefit from the money raised, with other mechanisms to reach those that don’t file taxes. The program isn’t expected to be finalized until 2025.
Lawmakers, meanwhile, are monitoring the development of regulations, but haven’t coalesced around legislative steps on the program. NY Renews, a powerful labor and environmental coalition, is pushing for some guardrails and spending priorities from the cap-and-trade style program.
Harckham said he’d like to start laying out spending priorities for the money raised. He wants a portion used for debt service on a $500 million stormwater and flooding infrastructure fund, with grants for local governments, to combat the effects of climate change.
Others appear to be taking more of a wait-and-see approach.
“Cap and invest is all in the governor’s hands right now,” Parker said.
Some environmental groups will be seeking another way to raise revenue: by penalizing major oil companies for damages from historical pollution from the sales of fossil fuels. The Senate is expected to continue to support the so-called Climate Superfund measure, but faces opposition from business groups and the industry.
Hochul hasn’t embraced the concept, either.