What's at stake:
New York is violating its own climate law — and New Yorkers are paying the price with their wallets, health, and lives. Not only has Governor Kathy Hochul pulled the plug on what was expected to be her primary policy to implement the climate law, cap and invest, but she has also threatened to roll back NY's climate plan. Over the past several weeks, she's approved a major fossil fuel pipeline, delayed NY's electric building mandate, and green-lit emissions-heavy cryptocurrency mining operations across the state.
We cannot let this continue. Use this tool to send a letter to your elected officials in the State Senate and Assembly to demand that they hold firm to protect the climate law. It's time to make polluters pay and invest that money back into New York communities to lower energy bills, create tens of thousands of jobs in renewable energy and building upgrades, and create green, healthy homes.
Send a letter today!
Here's the letter you'll send:
This message is sent to you by [YOUR NAME] a constituent in your district in zip code [YOUR ZIP CODE].
I am calling on you as my elected representative to protect our families and our futures by rejecting Gov. Hochul’s suggestion that the legislature roll back New York’s nation-leading climate law.
Doing so would impact the lives of generations of New Yorkers to come. Weakening the law condemns New Yorkers to suffer from unchecked, health-harming pollution, ever-worsening heat waves and storms, and the rising costs of fossil fuel energy provided by utilities that demand endless rate hikes to shore up outdated infrastructure. And, rolling back the climate law or delaying deadlines won’t do anything to help New Yorkers who are facing high energy bills right now. Instead, Hochul and the legislature should focus on meaningful reforms that will benefit New Yorkers, such as for relief from utility bills, energy efficiency improvements that will save people money right away, and making large tech companies pay their fair share for energy.
Governor Hochul’s administration has had ample time to issue regulations to meet the climate law’s legal requirements for lowering greenhouse gas emissions — and we know that the Department of Environmental Conservation has cap-and-invest regulations ready to go. The $1 billion Sustainable Future Program allocation is a good start, but it’s just that — a start. We know that cap and invest would put money back into New Yorkers’ pockets. Research shows that when cash payments are targeted based on regional energy costs and household income, average fossil fuel cost increases for households that make less than $200,000 a year could be fully covered by program revenues.
The Governor has had more than enough time to do this smoothly and affordably. Continued weakening of the law will hurt everyone in New York State — especially Black, Brown, and low-income communities living in disadvantaged communities who are owed 40% of the state investments from climate law implementation.
Thank you for your time and action.
[YOUR NAME]