GOP governors form ‘energy choice’ group

 

Ten Republican governors have joined together this week to form a group they say will promote “energy choice” policies at the state level.

Members of the coalition are Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon.    The organization — the Governors Coalition for Energy Choice — said in a statement that it aims to “ensure continued energy choice, minimize permitting and other regulatory barriers, limit expensive energy mandates, focus on affordability and reliability of energy infrastructure, and coordinate to positively manage energy resources and the environment.”   While the governors characterized the effort as supporting choice, opponents characterized it as anti-environment.    “’Energy choice’ is a thinly veiled code for more expensive natural gas projects,” Tim Cywinski, communications director for the Virginia chapter of the Sierra Club, told The Hill. “Natural gas isn’t just pollution-intensive, it’s also unreliable in the cold, and comes with a volatile, ever-increasing price point. Clean Energy isn’t only the cheaper option, it also doesn’t come with the trade-off of making our communities sick.” https://thehill.com/newsletters/energy-environment/4889607-gop-governors-form-energy-coalition/