Last June, in the tumult of the final days of New York’s legislative session, the state Senate passed a bill that almost no one – outside of the power industry lobbyists who crafted it – paid much attention to.
The bill’s one-sentence summary said it would create a program to support “zero emissions energy systems.” It passed unanimously, without any debate on the state Senate floor. But the Assembly didn’t get around to advancing it, and it was shunted to this year’s session.
Only in the fall did environmental groups realize that the proposal, if approved this year, could shift the course of New York energy policy, potentially opening a back door for power plants to keep polluting past New York’s legal deadline to achieve a 100% emissions-free grid.
Photo: Wikipedia