Griffo: New Yorkers should voice opinion on Climate Action Council’s Draft Scoping Plan

New York State Sen. Joseph Griffo, R-I-C-Rome, today urged all New Yorkers to get involved and submit official public comment on the Climate Action Council’s Draft Scoping Plan and efforts to eliminate reliable, affordable sources of energy. Natural gas hookups and services, as well as those from propane and heating oil, are vital for New Yorkers – especially in rural communities and during harsh winters – and cutting off these dependable sources of energy would be costly to residents and businesses and ineffective on a global scale. 

 The Climate Action Council has released a blueprint to alter the state’s energy plans, which includes: 

• No new gas service to existing buildings, beginning in 2024; 
• No natural gas within newly constructed buildings, beginning in 2024; 
• No new natural gas appliances for home heating, cooking, water heating, clothes drying beginning in 2030; 
• No gasoline-automobile sales by 2035; 
• Installing onsite solar or joining a community renewables program by 2040; and 
• Installing geothermal heating by 2040. 

New Yorkers have through April 30, 2022, to submit formal public comments on the proposed energy plan. Sen. Griffo encouraged hard-working residents and business owners to make their voices heard on these troubling policies. New Yorkers can use this link to submit public comments: https://climate.ny.gov/Our-Climate-Act/Draft-Scoping-Plan. 

Sen. Griffo said, “While it is important that we seek ways to protect our environment and conserve natural resources universally and not unilaterally, the Climate Action Council’s Draft Scoping Plan is an unsustainable and unaffordable proposal that will further burden residents, families, businesses and communities and force even more people to flee the state. I will continue to advocate for, propose and support legislation and initiatives that will stop the exodus, and I urge New Yorkers to submit public comments on this unrealistic plan that I fear will have detrimental effect and impact on our state for years to come."