After what New Yorkers and environmental campaigners called a “betrayal” by Gov. Kathy Hochul earlier this week, the Democrat is now under pressure to sign the Climate Change Superfund Act, which state legislators finally passed early Saturday morning.
Noting that the 95-46 New York State Assembly vote happened after 3:00am and followed the Senate passing the bill, Empire State Indivisible declared Saturday that “there can be no further delay! Gov. Kathy Hochul must sign the climate superfund into law IMMEDIATELY so NYS’ worst and wealthiest polluters pay for the harm they’ve caused our communities!”
New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG) similarly celebrated the passage of the bill, which — if signed by the governor — will force establish a 25-year fund financed by fossil fuel companies, with a third of the $3 billion in annual funding reserved for disadvantaged communities disproportionately affected by the climate emergency.
“The historic legislative approval of the Climate Change Superfund Act,” NYPIRG said, “is a huge step toward ensuring that Big Oil contributes to the mounting costs of climate catastrophe. Of course, the bill cannot become law without Gov. Hochul’s approval, but the act helps protect taxpayers and allows revenues to be made available to contribute toward necessary—but expensive—resiliency projects.”
“The sponsors and the supportive lawmakers in both the Senate and Assembly deserve credit for making sure that Big Oil adheres to the lesson that we all learned as kids, ‘you make a mess, you clean it up,'” the group added.
Food & Water Watch senior New York organizer Eric Weltman also welcomed the vote, saying that “the Climate Change Superfund Act is the legislation New Yorkers need right now. We applaud the Assembly for coming to their senses in the final hours of the legislative session and passing this critical bill. Now, Gov. Hochul, fresh off a spineless congestion pricing reversal that scandalized New........