New York State Enacts Sweeping Emissions Reduction Law

Last week, the New York State Legislature passed the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, Senate Bill S6599 ("CLCPA").¹ It is considered to impose "the most aggressive legal mandate in the country" for emissions reduction.² New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo called the bill "the most aggressive climate change program in the United States of America, period."³ Governor Cuomo is expected to sign it into law.

The timing of the CLCPA is notable given that the federal Environmental Protection Agency has just promulgated a rule requiring rather scant emissions reductions.⁴ Indeed, one supporter of the CLCPA remarked that "[a]s the White House continues to put fossil fuels first, this legislation is a model for other states to follow."⁵