Gov. Kathy Hochul this week sent the strongest signals yet that changes to New York state’s 2019 climate law could be coming as part of the state budget process. The CLCPA, or the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, is the blueprint for the state’s goals to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the coming decades.
“I have to focus on affordability, I have to focus on resiliency, I cannot let this state go dark,” she told the Times Union’s Dan Clark Monday, pointing to concerns over affordability and grid reliability related to the CLCPA.
Any such push is sure to meet resistance from progressive members of the state legislature, and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins reminded reporters Wednesday that budget negotiations have still not yet reached the point of serious discussions.
“We’ve heard that the governor is thinking of some things, and of course, we’re always willing to listen,” she said. “Discussions have not really begun in earnest.”
While legislative leaders met with Hochul Tuesday for some early stage setting, true budget negotiations don’t typically kick off until the senate and assembly release their one-house budget rebuttals in early March, and Hochul still has a little more than two weeks to submit her 30-day amendments, which is where changes to the CLCPA could appear.
The governor said Monday that she is specifically interested in reconsidering the methodology by which the state tallies its emissions, explaining that New York’s unique 20-year metric puts the state at a disadvantage over other states that use a 100-year methodology to count their emissions.
“I wanted to meet those goals; they’re great. It’s always fun to be nation leading,” she said. “If we were not held to a stricter standard for gauging emissions, twenty years versus one hundred years, we’d be one of the top in the nation, almost number one, but we’re held to a very different standard.”
Hochul is up for reelection and facing significant pressure to address energy concerns. In terms of the actual date-driven goals of the CLCPA, she pointed to the pandemic and inflation slowing progress on infrastructure.
Stewart-Cousins was noncommittal when asked about the issue of changing metrics.
“We’re always open to conversations about how we can do things better, obviously, we’re talking about affordability, the cost of affordability, but we also care deeply about our environment,” she said.
Last month, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie told Capital Tonight’s Susan Arbetter that there is no appetite in his conference to amend or roll back the climate law.
The senate Wednesday passed a slew of bills, intending in part to rein in the rate-setting power of utility companies and shape the role of the Public Service Commission in that process.
State Sen. Michelle Hinchey advocated for steering the affordability conversation in that direction.
“I think we can do both things, we can protect our environment and we can also drive down the costs, making sure the PSC is fighting for their constituents and utility customers and holding utility companies accountable,” she said.
Republicans in the state legislature have long railed against the state’s climate law, and the issue of methodology in particular. Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt urged the governor to follow through during budget negotiations.
“The damage of these policies is going to be real unless something changes. I think the governor actually knows this; the question is, will she be strong enough and have the political cache and will to do something about it?” she said.
If the governor were to propose these changes, it could come as part of her 30-day amendments to her initial budget proposal due in just over two weeks.