Politico New York: Legislators ask Cuomo to ‘get rid of coal in New York’

Today, Politico New York reported that Sen. Liz Krueger and several elected colleagues, joined by the Sierra Club, called on Governor Cuomo to make an enforceable committment to phase out coal-fired electricity generation in New York State by 2020. Full text of the article can be read below.

Legislators ask Cuomo to ‘get rid of coal in New York’

By CONOR SKELDING

Several state and city legislators on Monday morning asked Gov. Andrew Cuomo to commit to banning coal power plants in New York by the year 2020.

State Sen. Liz Krueger praised Cuomo for committing to reduce New York's carbon emissions 40 percent by 2030 at a speech at Columbia in October.

"Governor, you're bringing us so far, we just need a few more feet to take to get rid of coal in New York," she said at a Sierra Club press conference held on the steps of City Hall.

Krueger said that the state's four remaining coal plants should be closed, and that ratepayers should not be forced to subsidize them. She also said that, if the plants are closed, their workers should be retrained and the communities "made whole" for lost tax revenue.

Councilman Donovan Richards said that he is expecting a boy on Nov. 27, "and this is about his future."

"This is personal," he said. "I represent a constituency that was hit very hard by Hurricane Sandy, the Rockaways ... we know that if we do not get serious about climate change, there are certain communities, like the Rockaways, that will be wiped off of the map."

Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi didn't immediately return an email for comment.

Assemblyman Brian Kavanagh, Assemblywoman Rebecca Seawright, Assemblywoman Jo Anne Simon and Councilman Ben Kallos also spoke.