HOYLMAN STATEMENT IN RESPONSE TO REPORT SHOWING 2015 WAS THE HOTTEST YEAR IN RECORDED HISTORY

Hoylman: Today’s report should lay to rest any doubts by my colleagues in the Republican Senate leadership that climate change is both real and man-made”

NEW YORK – State Senator Brad Hoylman (D-Manhattan), Ranking Member of the Senate Environmental Conservation Committee, released the following statement in response to today’s announcement by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) declaring 2015 the warmest year on record. In their announcement, scientists noted that last year’s record temperature was a direct consequence of global warming that has resulted from human emissions of greenhouse gases.

“Today’s report should lay to rest any doubts by my colleagues in the Republican Senate leadership that climate change is both real and man-made,” said State Senator Brad Hoylman. “As we saw during Hurricane Sandy – which caused more than $50 billion in damage and killed at least 100 people – global warming poses an existential threat to our city and our state. I urge Senate Republicans to end their climate-denying obstructionism and get serious about one of the defining issues of our time. They can start by taking up the Senate Democratic Conference and Governor Cuomo’s priority of codifying the state’s Climate Action Plan, which will get us to an 80% reduction in fossil fuel use by 2050. As ranking member of the Environmental Conservation Committee, I look forward to working with my colleagues and Governor Cuomo to pass comprehensive legislation to avoid the worst effects of climate change and build a safer and more sustainable planet for future generations of New Yorkers.”