Pennsylvania will no longer seek to be part of a regional climate agreement among states in the Northeast U.S.

A recent budget deal ends the commonwealth’s effort to participate in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), according to a statement from state Senate Republicans.

The initiative sets a cap on planet-warming emissions and requires power plants in the states to purchase allowances to release carbon dioxide.

In 2019, then-Gov. Tom Wolf (D) issued an order seeking to join RGGI. That order was challenged in court and has been the subject of an ongoing legal fight.

Signing the budget legislation on Wednesday, Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) said that exiting the program gets rid of a GOP talking point.

“For years, the Republicans who have led the Senate have used RGGI as an excuse to stall substantive conversations about energy production. Today, that excuse is gone,” Shapiro said at a press conference. 

“It is time now to look forward, and I’m looking forward to aggressively pushing for policies that create more jobs in the energy sector, bring more clean energy onto our grid and reduce the cost of energy for all Pennsylvanians,” he added.

Asked what comes next on climate, the governor pointed to his own energy plan, which also includes a cap-and-invest provision for emissions.

According to Shapiro’s office, the budget also increases education funding and provides tax credits for families, among other provisions.

Pennsylvania state Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward (R) described getting out of the program as being among Republican “wins,” saying in a written statement it will “give Pennsylvania families more certainty with their electricity rates.”

Supporters of the climate initiative criticized the move.

“RGGI was the Commonwealth’s strongest tool for lowering energy costs, strengthening the grid, and cutting climate pollution,” Lena Moffitt, executive director of climate advocacy group Evergreen Action, said in a written statement.

“Governor Shapiro was elected as a fighter who wouldn’t back down. But today, he caved to Republican obstruction, and now Pennsylvania families will pay the price,” she said.

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