New York Enacts Climate Superfund Act

Recently, Governor Kathy Hochul signed Senate Bill (SB) 2129B, the Climate Change Superfund Act, into law. This follows two years of debate on the legislation. Under the law “responsible parties,” including companies that produced, refined, and sold conventional fuels between 2000-2018 would be charged a fee for their historic greenhouse gas emissions. The state would pool this money and use it to pay for “climate change adaptive infrastructure projects.” Bill supporters believe it is important that companies with the largest carbon footprint pay a price for their historic emissions, given the damage caused by climate change.

The bill is structured to mirror the federal superfund program that provides resources to cleanup and restore extremely polluted and hazardous sites around the country. SB 2129B is likely to face an immediate legal challenge. Vermont passed a similar climate superfund bill last year.

NPGA will continue to monitor legislative superfund action and determine its potential impact on the propane industry. For more information, contact NPGA’s Director of State Affairs, Jacob Peterson.