GREEN GROUPS WEIGH IN ON NYC CONGESTION PRICING PAUSE: Major green groups are calling for Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul to reconsider her pause on a controversial New York City congestion pricing proposal, and are requesting to meet with her to discuss a “prompt resolution to the situation.”
The latest: In a letter sent out on Tuesday, Evergreen Action led a coalition of environmental groups to plead for Hochul to recommit to the proposal – a plan that would force drivers to pay $15 to enter midtown Manhattan, in a bid to ease traffic while bringing in billions to rebuild the city’s infrastructure. But the proposal was heavily opposed by residents – especially drivers coming in from the boroughs and the suburbs outside Manhattan.
A key quote from the letter: “This decision will have significant consequences for New York, and it will reverberate nationally. Your proposed indefinite delay poses a significant risk to achieving New York’s climate goals and the imperative to both reduce traffic congestion and ensure sustainable funding for more affordable and reliable transportation.”
The letter goes on to mention that Hochul has been a “steadfast advocate” for the proposal that was “years in the making.”
Why this is important: Transportation is the second biggest sector in terms of the city’s carbon dioxide emissions, behind buildings – accounting for nearly a third of the total annual greenhouse gas emissions for 2022. The policy would’ve helped the city advance toward its goal of cutting GHGs by 80% by 2050. But the pullback from Hochul shows just how difficult it will be for a city in the U.S. to implement a congestion pricing plan – even a city where most of the residents rely on public transportation as their main mode of transit.
But, note the election-year politics angle: Hochul had delayed implementation of the plan following concerns raised by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries that the proposal could hurt Democrats in competitive House races this year, as reported first by Politico.
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EYES TO THE SENATE FLOOR FOR NUCLEAR PACKAGE: The Senate is expected today to consider a package that looks to overhaul the nuclear sector and support the buildout of advanced reactors. We’ll keep you posted on when a vote will be scheduled.
CLIMATE LABOR RULES FINALIZED: The Treasury Department has issued a final rule outlining labor requirements clean energy developers must meet in order to receive beefed-up tax credits.
The details: By meeting the agency’s prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements, developers can earn five times the baseline established under the Inflation Reduction Act. The credits would cover a wide range of projects, including solar, wind, nuclear, hydrogen, and more.
The subsidies had become available in early 2023 – but the finalized standards give more clarity on how to proceed with projects.
Why this is important: This move further underlines the messaging from White House officials that the IRA is good for U.S. jobs – with Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen touting the rules as supporting the administration’s strategy to back “people in places where potential exists, but opportunity hasn’t,” CQ Roll Call outlines.
But: Whether or not this registers with voters in time for the November election remains to be seen. Read about the tax credits from the Treasury here.
ANOTHER LAWSUIT HITTING TAILPIPE EMISSIONS STANDARDS: Oil and gas groups are suing the EPA (again) over its tailpipe emissions standards – this time, to overturn the agency’s rule regulating heavy duty trucks.
The American Petroleum Institute, along with the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers, filed multiple lawsuits Tuesday on behalf of a number of organizations, consisting of energy producers, marketers, retailers, machinists, and consumer groups, arguing that the agency overstepped its authority. The lawsuits were filed with the D.C. Circuit Court.
The gist of the lawsuits: “EPA’s final rule exceeds the agency’s statutory authority and is otherwise arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, and not in accordance with law,” the API lawsuit reads.
Rich Moskowitz, AFPM’s general counsel, said that the standards “will increase costs for consumers, dramatically strain the U.S. electric grid, contribute to more traffic and congestion on roads, undermine our energy independence, and impact every sector of the U.S. economy. EPA, quite simply, cannot do something so sweeping on its own without express legislative direction from Congress.”
The trade groups filed a separate lawsuit last week to overturn the agency’s tailpipe emissions standards for light- and medium-duty vehicles.
JUDGE ENDS EXXON SUIT AGAINST CLIMATE ACTIVIST INVESTOR: The legal fight between Exxon Mobil and activist investor Arjuna Capital has come to an end, at least for now.
U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman for the Northern District of Texas threw out Exxon’s lawsuit against Arjuna, in which the oil major had sought to block a climate-related shareholder resolution from Arjuna, even though the proposal was withdrawn before the shareholder meeting last month.
Pittman, appointed by Donald Trump, said yesterday that the suit was moot, given that Arjuna had promised not to file a similar resolution in the future, CNBC reports.
Exxon claims victory: Exxon CEO Darren Woods cast the decision as a win for the company, saying in a press release that Pittman “made it clear that Arjuna is bound by its commitment to not submit, or work with others to submit, similar proposals to ExxonMobil in the future.”
Exxon’s leadership is coming off a major win over climate investors at the May meeting. Woods and other board members were easily reappointed despite an effort by activist investors and Democratic state financial officials to oppose them over their treatment of Arjuna and other activist shareholders.
FISKER FILES FOR BANKRUPTCY: The electric vehicle maker Fisker announced late yesterday that it has filed for bankruptcy, citing what it referred to in a press statement as “various market and macroeconomic headwinds” that made it difficult to operate.
The move comes about a year after a difficult rollout for its only offering, the Ocean, which was plagued by complaints about glitchy software. The company produced 10,000 Oceans in 2023 but was only able to deliver around 4,900 to customers, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Fisker’s bankruptcy is the latest sign of difficulties for EV makers. EV maker Lordstown also filed for bankruptcy last year. Rivian has had to scale back its plans for manufacturing. And Tesla has aggressively cut prices and shed jobs this year. All this has come against the backdrop of slowing sales growth and expectations from manufacturers that demand will be softer than previously thought.
KEEPING AN EYE ON OIL PRICES: Oil prices rose above a few notable benchmarks this morning.
WTI crude rose above $81, and is now above the Department of Energy’s target range for purchases for refilling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
Brent crude also rose roughly 1%, continuing a rally over the past few days, to touch $85. It’s now more expensive than it was before the announcement by OPEC+ earlier this month related to production cuts, which was less aggressive than investors expected and was followed by a significant decline in prices.
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY ANNOUNCES $900M FOR SMR DEPLOYMENT: The Department of Energy said yesterday that it would fund up to $900 million to aid in the deployment of small modular nuclear reactors.
Of the funding, which is available under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, $800 million is available for one or two “first-mover teams” of utilities, developers, and end-users looking to set up a first plant with SMRs. The other $100 million is for deployment support via the Office of Nuclear Energy, to help with design, licensing, supplier development, and site preparation.
Secretary Jennifer Granholm said that the funding will “support early movers in the nuclear sector as we seek to scale up nuclear power.”
RUNDOWN
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