Progress on climate largely derailed by Assembly and fossil fuel interests
New York lawmakers approved a $237 billion state budget on Saturday, April 20th, after a series of obstacles and impasses caused the State’s fiscal plan to be three weeks late. But while the chaos of an early Easter, a major solar eclipse, and a computer hack played a role in the delayed negotiations of this budget, nothing was more disruptive than the glut of special interest money and misinformation targeted at lawmakers to block public benefit initiatives, especially on environmental issues.
New York State, like much of the world, is at the convergence of a climate, extinction, and forever-chemical contamination crisis. As the 10th largest economy in the world, New York has significant influence over how the rest of the planet rises to the challenge of these unfolding catastrophes. But as this budget has demonstrated, the climate crisis is only made worse by New York’s democracy crisis. The failure to pass the universally popular and desperately needed NY HEAT ACT in the NYS budget is linked to the control that fossil fuel interests have over Assembly leadership and the scant climate policy allowed to move through that house. This bill was to end long-standing fossil fuel entitlements while ushering in a new era of innovation, affordability, and climate equity in the building sector. New York cannot make the transition to healthy, cost-effective, and emissions-free buildings if we continue to facilitate and subsidize new fracked gas infrastructure over efficient heat pumps and thermal energy networks. Despite the fact this legislation was aimed at reducing energy costs, the NY HEAT Act was ironically defeated by fossil fuel opponents with the narrative that it was too expensive to implement. This false narrative, aided by a multimillion dollar ad campaign, was also fatal to efforts for increasing solar, geothermal, and EV rebates, decarbonizing state buildings and campuses, establishing electric bus mandates, and adequately funding the implementation of our climate laws.
Equally perplexing was the rejection of the ‘Climate Superfund Act,’ legislation that would have required fossil fuel companies that have significantly contributed to greenhouse gas emissions since the 1990s to contribute a share of the costs of infrastructure investments required to adapt to climate change impacts. The Climate Superfund would have put $3 billion a year into the State’s coffers over the next 25 years. And to be clear, this is not a tax, but the state demanding for money to be returned from oil and gas windfalls that truly should be ours, stolen from the futures of all New Yorkers in the form of polluted skies, respiratory disease and premature deaths, devastating storm surges, and blistering heat waves. It is hard to have the state both stall climate solutions for lack of money, and then reject billions of dollars that are owed to us from the same entities most responsible for the worst impacts of climate change.
While the Sierra Club is satisfied that funding levels for the Environmental Protection Fund, Clean Water Infrastructure, and the State Park System have been restored to the status quo after earlier proposals to cut or sweep money from these programs, it is hard to reconcile not doing more to stave off the increasing emergencies facing New York’s environment. Study after study has shown us that when it comes to addressing the climate crisis, inaction is always the most expensive option. The Sierra Club urges the Senate, Assembly, and Governor not to waste the precious time we have left in the 2024 legislative session and to pass initiatives that will end the scourge of toxic chemicals, protect our remaining wild areas, advance our climate goals, and help create healthier and more equitable communities.
UPDATED: End of 2024 Session Press Statement