In order to secure our future, Pennsylvanians need affordable and reliable sources of energy and heavy investment in our home-grown energy resources.
Pennsylvania’s economic future remains in significant crisis. Costs continue to increase, budget decisions at the state level are increasingly more difficult, and we are losing jobs and investment to surrounding states because of energy policy decisions of the prior and current gubernatorial administrations.
The reality of bad public policy was evident at the start of this month when many Pennsylvania families were hit with the news that their energy costs will be going up, despite the commonwealth having abundant energy resources right under our feet.
Unfortunately, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives is likely to consider legislation in the coming weeks that continues us down the wrong path. The Pennsylvania Reliable Energy Sustainability Standard (PRESS) legislation being sought by the Shapiro administration as part of the governor’s “Lightning Plan” will only add to the problem by incentivizing state investment in so-called alternative energy sources like wind and solar while disincentivizing clean burning and affordable natural gas and other staple energy products that have produced Pennsylvania jobs and can lead to a better Pennsylvania economy.
The timing of the legislative push behind the governor’s PRESS plan is particularly egregious. PJM Interconnection and independent analysts have sounded the alarm: reckless state and federal energy policies that discriminate against reliable home-grown Pennsylvania energy generation – especially coal and natural gas plants – are driving the skyrocketing electricity costs hitting every Pennsylvanian.
The passage of PRESS would double down on already-made bad decisions by prioritizing unreliable wind and solar projects over the reliable energy sources that currently power our communities and economy.
This legislation not only ignores the immediate financial pain of Pennsylvanians but also jeopardizes our future by putting in doubt the sustainability of our energy sector, energy jobs, and associated economic growth for energy and tech companies who want to invest in our Commonwealth and its people if we start making the right decisions.
I have always believed that when it comes to legislating, we need to make our decisions based upon the bill before us, not on the concepts on which they are based. And it is obvious that should the PRESS bill pass, it will send a clear signal that Pennsylvania is no longer focused on securing our economic future with investment in reliable sources of energy.
While we may be just a few short years away from flipping switches and not having the lights turn on, the keys to success in Pennsylvania’s energy future are quite simple.
The first thing we need to do is immediately get out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI)—a tax that increases energy bills and has placed significant uncertainty in the energy market—and not replace it with anything. RGGI puts Pennsylvania at an economic competitive disadvantage, has stifled investment in Pennsylvania by those looking to use our abundant energy resources, and has been an impediment to family-sustaining job growth in the energy sector.
Next, we must shift our regulatory focus so that it is easier to get energy projects off the ground and start a business in Pennsylvania. States that are winning the game for energy jobs and related tech and other private sector investment actively help get these projects off the ground while Pennsylvania continues to pick winners and losers in a bureaucratic nightmare process. If Pennsylvania wants the investment and the jobs, then Pennsylvania’s government needs to get out of the way.
More long term, Pennsylvania should prioritize investment in career and technical education so that Pennsylvania’s students are ready for the jobs that will be open to them when it comes time for the significant investment we can bring by incentivizing the growth of our energy sector.
Unfortunately, the PRESS legislation will set us further back from achieving these goals while investing in more costly and less reliable forms of energy.
