Pennsylvania court permanently blocks effort to make power plants pay for greenhouse gas emissions

By MARC LEVY
Associated Press

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A court says Pennsylvania can’t enforce a regulation to make power plant owners pay for their planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions. The ruling Wednesday by the Commonwealth Court is another setback for the centerpiece of former Gov. Tom Wolf’s plan to fight global warming. The court temporarily blocked it last year, and the new ruling makes that decision permanent. The plan would’ve made Pennsylvania the first major fossil fuel-producing state to adopt a carbon-pricing program. The court agreed with Republican lawmakers and coal-related interests that the plan amounted to a tax that would require legislative approval. It would be up to Wolf’s successor, Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, to decide whether to appeal.