Law Holds Fossil Fuel Companies Responsible for Impact of Pollution on New York Communities
Actions are Latest Move to Strengthen State’s Climate Actions and Environmental Protection Laws to Prevent Harmful Impacts to New Yorkers
“The governor’s approval of the Climate Change Superfund Act is a welcome holiday gift for New York taxpayers. Until her approval, New York taxpayers were 100% on the financial hook for climate costs. Now Big Oil will pay for much of the damages that they helped cause.” – New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG) Executive Director Blair Horner
A News Release from the Office of New York State Governor Kathy Hochul
Posted December 29th, 2024 on Niagara At Large
(A Brief Foreword Note from Doug Draper at Niagara At Large – It is long past time that ever more of us start pushing our political leaders at all levels of government in Niagara, in Ontario and across Canada to do what New York State is doing here.
Why should middole and lower income taxpaying citizens get stuck with the bill for mounting billions of dollars of costs each year from the damage and destruction caused by big fossil fuel corporations that have been so willfully and recklessly spending countless lobbying dollars to work on our political representatives and on us to deny or ignore the science around climate change for decades now?
And here’s a question I have for Ontario Premier Doug Ford and for his federal Conservative Party friend Pierre Poilievre – ‘If you are as concerned about the tax burden on everyday people as you claim you are, who don’t you do what New York State has done, or in the case of prime minister wannabe and “axe tje tax” Poilievre, promise you are going to do it?
Now here is the New York State governor’s news release –
New York State Governor Kathy Hochul
Albany, New York – New York State Governor Kathy Hochul today (this past December 26th) signed landmark legislation to bolster New York’s efforts to protect and restore the environment by requiring large fossil fuel companies to pay for critical projects that protect New Yorkers.
Legislation S.2129-B/A.3351-B creates a ‘Climate Superfund’ to support New York-based projects that bolster New York’s resiliency to dangerous climate impacts like flooding and extreme heat.
“With nearly every record rainfall, heatwave, and coastal storm, New Yorkers are increasingly burdened with billions of dollars in health, safety, and environmental consequences due to polluters that have historically harmed our environment,” Governor Hochul said.
“Establishing the Climate Superfund is the latest example of my administration taking action to hold polluters responsible for the damage done to our environment and requiring major investments in infrastructure and other projects critical to protecting our communities and economy.”
This landmark legislation shifts the cost of climate adaptation from everyday New Yorkers to the fossil fuel companies most responsible for the pollution.
By creating a Climate Change Adaptation Cost Recovery Program, this law ensures that these companies contribute to the funding of critical infrastructure investments, such as coastal protection and flood mitigation systems, to enhance the climate resilience of communities across the state.
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Interim Commissioner Sean Mahar said, “Holding polluters accountable for the damages they cause is essential to New York’s environmental protection efforts, and I commend Governor Hochul for signing this historic climate legislation into law.
By ensuring those responsible for historic climate-altering emissions bear the costs of the significant health, environmental, and economic impacts already being passed on to New Yorkers, this law will complement the State’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, help communities adapt to the climate-driven impacts experienced today, and leverage the significant investments the Governor is making in climate resilience.”
Some Quotes from New York State legislatures and public interest groups –
New York State Senator Liz Krueger
“The Climate Change Superfund Act is now law, and New York has fired a shot that will be heard round the world: : the companies most responsible for the climate crisis will be held accountable Too often over the last decade, courts have dismissed lawsuits against the oil and gas industry by saying that the issue of climate culpability should be decided by legislatures. Well, the Legislature of the State of New York – the 10th largest economy in the world – has accepted the invitation, and I hope we have made ourselves very clear: the planet’s largest climate polluters bear a unique responsibility for creating the climate crisis, and they must pay their fair share to help regular New Yorkers deal with the consequences.” – New York State Senator Liz Krueger
“As we anticipate the enormous costs associated with climate resiliency efforts to be shouldered by municipalities statewide, it made perfect sense, from the start, to require fossil fuel companies to help pay for the undeniable damage they have done to our environment. I applaud Governor Hochul for enacting the Climate Change Superfund Act.” – State Senator Pete Harckham
“We refuse to let the entire burden of climate change fall on the backs of our taxpayers while Big Oil reaps record profits at the expense of our future. The Climate Change Superfund Act is a groundbreaking victory for accountability, fairness, and environmental justice. By ensuring the fossil fuel industry pays for some of the damages it has caused, we’re addressing the staggering costs of climate adaptation and setting a precedent for the nation to follow. ” – New York State Assemblymember Jeffrey Dinowitz
“New Yorkers are desperate for climate solutions because they have directly experienced how increasingly severe storms, floods, droughts, heatwaves, and public health emergencies are hurting our communities and undermining the affordability of everything. Fossil fuel companies for decades have plunged our planet into the climate crisis, without contributing any of their windfall profits to pay for the catastrophic damage they helped create. Thanks to Governor Hochul and the legislature this gross inequity is about to change.” – Sierra Club Atlantic Chapter Conservation Director Roger Downs
“The governor’s approval of the Climate Change Superfund Act is a welcome holiday gift for New York taxpayers. Until her approval, New York taxpayers were 100% on the financial hook for climate costs. Now Big Oil will pay for much of the damages that they helped cause. As a result, New Yorkers will have their future tax burden reduced by $3 billion annually. This legislation is also designed to ensure that the oil industry will protect consumers from Climate Superfund costs being passed along. It’s a win for taxpayers and consumers. – New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG) Executive Director Blair Horner
New York State’s Climate Agenda – New York State’s climate agenda calls for an affordable and just transition to a clean energy economy that creates family-sustaining jobs, promotes economic growth through green investments, and directs a minimum of 35 percent of the benefits to disadvantaged communities. New York is advancing a suite of efforts to achieve an emissions-free economy by 2050, including in the energy, buildings, transportation, and waste sectors.
A Footnote from Doug Draper at Niagara At Large – A high five to long-time Niagara, Ontario activist Bruce Allen for circulating this news around to fellow activists in the Niagara region as a message for the kind of decisive action our political leaders north of the Canada/U.S. bordershould be taking to address the climate crisis.
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