Photo: Mike Macklin/WBZ NewsRadio
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Gov. Maura Healey signed a new climate bill Tuesday that will promote the development and use of clean energy in Massachusetts. It seeks to improve energy affordability, promote non-gas heating, and expand access to electric vehicles (EVs).
Healey called the new law a significant step forward.
“This isn’t just about passing a bill,” the governor said. “It’s about making a strong commitment to a thriving clean energy economy, delivering climate justice for our communities, lowering costs for residents, creating good jobs and growing our economy and will forge a pass for the rest of the nation to follow.”
Read More: Boston Receives Federal Grant to Fund Climate Jobs
Democratic State Sen. Michael Barrett said "this law is going to make over the state's approach to climate change," and that it is a "strategic" move before President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House in January. According to the Associated Press, Trump previously said he will roll back some of President Joe Biden's climate policies and promote the use of fossil fuels. He ran on the slogan of "DRILL, BABY, DRILL," and plans, according to his campaign platform, to "make America the dominant energy producer in the world, by far!"
Barrett said "it is too early to predict" how another Trump presidency will affect climate policy, but that there are "multiple pathways to a clean energy future, and the superpower of the law we're celebrating today is its breadth and sheer versatility."
“If the Trump people take away the federal subsidies for buying EVs, thanks to this statute, Massachusetts people continue to get a break,” Barrett said. “Unlike California, we did not let our state level incentives lapse. Instead, we extended them in this new law and we intend to protect the middle class.”
WBZ NewsRadio's Mike Macklin (@mikemacklinwbz) reports.
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