Massachusetts lawmakers are having second thoughts about nixing the state’s 2030 climate target after public backlash prompted top Democrats to shelve the proposal.
State Rep. Aaron Michlewitz, the Democrat who chairs the House Ways and Means Committee, said lawmakers likely would drop anything related to the 2030 target from Gov. Maura Healey’s (D) pending energy affordability legislation. But he predicted legislators would continue to debate the 2030 target in other legislation.
“There’s still a lot more work to do on it,” Michlewitz said in an interview, describing an effort to balance the state’s climate leadership with their constituents’ cost of living concerns, especially on energy. “We’re grappling with how to do that.”
That is a sharp turnaround from last week, when Democratic state Rep. Mark Cusack fast-tracked the proposal through the joint energy committee, which he co-chairs, without a hearing.
