Tell Gov. Hochul: No Climate Rollbacks, No Gutting Environmental Laws

Don’t Gut the Climate Law

Dear Governor Hochul, Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins and Speaker Heastie - As a New Yorker, I am appalled that foundational environmental laws are on track to be gutted in this year’s State budget, while the Trump administration eviscerates rules to protect drinking water, clean air and our climate at the national level. I expect New York leaders to fight back and protect our communities, not capitulate to big polluters and despots. I am embarrassed that references to climate change are being expunged from NY State websites and state authorities are spreading false projections and misinformation to scare citizens about a transition to renewable energy. These kinds of actions come from Trump’s play book, and should have no place in a democratic administration. Undermining the Climate Law will do nothing to bring down surging energy bills, and will only continue our state’s reliance on polluting, expensive fossil fuels. There is no “breathing room” for the 2 million New Yorkers who suffer from asthma and have to endure more sweltering days, choked by wildfire smoke. Please do all you can to advance the progress of the CLCPA - especially the parts of the law designed to make energy more affordable for everyday New Yorkers, like a cap and invest program. In lieu of such a program, which requires the biggest climate polluters to help pay for the clean energy transition, please fund, for a second year, at least a one billion dollar ‘Sustainable Future’ fund. This is an essential infusion of capital to finance thermal energy networks, solar and wind projects, electric school buses, electric vehicle charging stations, and home weatherization and efficiency programs. With the inclusion of a $500 million dollar Environmental Protection Fund, this is part of New York’ s true path to affordability. In addition to keeping the goals of our Climate Law intact, please maintain the integrity of the State Environmental Quality Review Act. Poorly conceived plans in the Executive Budget to exempt almost all housing from environmental review will create a new set of problems that will come with their own expenses, potentially undermining any cost savings the reforms seek to achieve. The legislature must engage more on the root causes of the affordable housing crisis if we are to find lasting solutions. Merely blaming the environmental review process will only ensure that new unaffordable housing in the future will come with greater environmental impacts. In addition to climate change, New Yorkers are facing a contamination crisis where ‘forever’ chemicals, like PFOS and PFOA, have permeated the water we drink and the food we eat, which has led to a wave of new cancers, neuropathies and health ailments in our communities. Please support in the budget, restrictions on these harmful chemicals from everyday products. In addition, we urge you to place a 5-year moratorium on the spreading of sewage “biosolids”, which we know contain dangerous levels of PFAS chemicals and have been linked to contaminated milk and food crops, on any land in NY. The pause on land spreading will give regulators, farmers, and waste treatment operators the time to come up with a better plan for sewage treatment. Protection of New York’s environment is sacrosanct, and the Trump administration’s assault on our clean air, clean water and climate laws should be an invitation for your intervention, not complicity. Please restore NY’s status as a climate leader and I urge you to pass a budget that reflects those values. Sincerely,