Local state Sen. Scott Hutchinson has signed on to a letter asking a regulatory commission to hold off implementation of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative in Pennsylvania.

RGGI is a compact between several Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states that impose a carbon tax on electricity production and require fossil fuel generators to purchase allowances. Participating states, through legislative or regulatory action, agree to implement the initiative through a tax and spend program involving CO2 emitting electric power plants.

Hutchinson, R-Butler/Clarion/Venango/Warren, is one of seven state senators to sign a letter to the state Independent Regulatory Review Commission asking the group to reject a final proposed regulation approved recently by the Environmental Quality Board. Earlier this year, the state Department of Environmental Protection disregarded the Independent Regulatory Review Commission’s recommendation to delay RGGI by a year to allow for more engagement with impacted industries and communities.

The letter states the IRRC’s rejection could pave the way for a more constructive dialogue between the Governor’s Office and the General Assembly to consider common sense energy policy reforms that do not impair our economy and harm our constituents.

Senators approved the letter during a 36-minute meeting of the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee earlier this week, with the approval coming 7-4 along party lines.

Republican disagreement with RGGI is nothing new, as the majority party has been feuding with Gov. Tom Wolf over the issue for the better part of two years. Republicans say the governor has no legal right to impose a tax on energy without legislative approval and point to the economic costs RGGI would impose on power generators and ratepayers while Wolf says executive and regulatory action is needed to pay Pennsylvania’s plan to fight climate change.

“I’d like to encourage my colleagues for a yes vote supporting the letter,” said Sen. Scott Martin, R-Lancaster. “Quite frankly, when I see the economic impact of what’s being proposed that can lead to a potential 18% increase in utility rates on low-income individuals, middle-income individuals, I find that to be terribly frightening that the people’s elected representatives here in their house, which has approved every interstate related compact that Pennsylvania has been involved in throughout its history, the fact that these discussions aren’t going through the legislature, with over a half billion dollars at stake, to me is very troubling and the precedent it’s sending is equally as troubling.”

Sen. Katie Muth, D-Berks/Chester/Montgomery, asked if the committee would be reviewing legislation to deal with Pennsyvlania’s energy future. Sen. Gene Yaw, R-Bradford/Lycoming/Sullivan/Susquehanna/Union, and committee majority chairman, said some legislation has been introduced to deal with some of the issues Muth raised, but Muth said more should be done.

“I think I would just ask that this committee consider a comprehensive plan that puts Pennsylvania in a more secure space in terms of both public health and economic relief,” she said. “There are communities that have been left behind in the extraction industry. There are people that are suffering as we speak from living next to radioactive waste in landfills from fracking. There is contamination across Pennsylvania’s water supply that people either cannot drink or are drinking horrible things that should not be in their drinking water from the various processes from the beginning of drilling a well to the waste disposal. There is a mess to clean up. What I’m hearing is this committee’s only considering carbon capture, which is incredibly expensive. I would really be interested to see a more comprehensive layout of how we’re going to put that forward. … The clock is ticking on us acting urgently to bring forth Pennsylvania’s part of the solution to climate change. This committee has done nothing thus far to do that. I will commit right now to come in here every day to figure out how to get Pennsylvania on a better path forward.”