Speaker Heastie Statement on Build Public Renewables Act

The Assembly Majority has long championed environmental issues to ensure a cleaner future for our residents. This session alone we took the lead on passing a new Environmental Quality Bond Act, enacting a landmark first-in-the-nation crypto mining moratorium at fossil fuel plants in New York, putting in place new appliance efficiency standards, passing legislation to preserve 30 percent of New York's land and water, and banning the use of harmful pesticides. These bills and many others build on the Assembly's long and proud tradition of working to protect our environment and recognizing the challenges to our climate.

We agree with the goals of the Build Public Renewables Act. The final version of the bill -- amended two days prior to the scheduled close of our legislative session -- had support in our conference, but not enough to move forward at this point.

Because of our support for the goals of the bill, I have asked the chairs of our Assembly Committees on Energy, Corporations, and Environmental Conservation to convene a hearing on July 28 to review this subject and get additional public input. There are several aspects of the legislation that these hearings will examine, including among others: capacity needed to meet goals, potential costs of needed infrastructure, impacts on consumers and taxpayers, acquisition costs, and siting and eminent domain criteria. We encourage all interested parties to provide testimony to help guide us in developing a sound and sustainable approach to meeting the goals of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act.