Yesterday, in what can only be called ugly and ill-advised, Pennsylvania President Pro Tempore Senator Scarnati forwarded HB 1100—the so called “Energy and Fertilizer Manufacturing Tax Credit”—to Governor Wolf for his signature. While the final passage of HB 1100 occurred on February 4, 2020, Senator Scarnati chose the chaos of the Coronavirus pandemic as the time to send it to the Governor’s desk. The question of “why now”, after already waiting more than six weeks, remains an ugly mystery.

HB 1100 is a bad bill. It’s little more than a hidden subsidy to Pennsylvania’s natural gas industry hidden behind the veil of promised new manufacturing jobs, to say nothing of its complete disregard for the negative health impacts it will have on our children. EEN has long stood against this kind of bad legislation. 

The good news is that Governor Wolf has promised to veto HB 1100. We encourage him to keep his promise and we urge bipartisan support to sustain the Governor’s anticipated veto. We urge the Commonwealth to support new and well-paying jobs, especially in this time of critical need and deep uncertainty. Let’s work together for the good of all Pennsylvanians by dealing with the social and economic impact of the Coronavirus first and then working together in a bipartisan way to incentivize good paying jobs that don’t threaten our children’s lives.