ALBANY, New York — New York state is moving to weaken an ambitious 2019 climate law once hailed as trailblazing.
Gov. Kathy Hochul said Thursday she had secured changes to the law’s timelines and the way emissions are calculated to align New York with other states. The overhaul effectively defers major new policies to reduce emissions until at least 2028.
The adjustments, Hochul said, are needed to balance concerns about the affordability of the law’s ambitious targets given rising energy costs and federal opposition to clean energy.
“This is what leadership looks like — when you’re the one person in the state who looks at the reality of the world as it is and not looking at it through these rose-colored glasses,” the governor told reporters. “I’m demonstrating the hard leadership that this moment requires.”
