On November 1, 2023, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court ruled in a 4-1 decision that former Governor Tom Wolf’s (D) move to join the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) through executive action was an illegal tax.[1] RGGI is the longest-running mandatory greenhouse reduction program in the U.S. and includes eleven states, though Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin (R) is attempting to leave the program. Pennsylvania would be the first major fossil-fuel-producing state to join the initiative. Former Governor Wolf sought to join RGGI in 2019 but was opposed by the Republican majority General Assembly. The state’s participation in RGGI had been on pause for over a year as Judge Michael Wojcik (D) had issued a preliminary injunction. According to the court, without authorization from the state legislature, RGGI is an unlawful tax. Judge Wojcik wrote in the majority opinion, “Stated simply, to pass constitutional muster, the Commonwealth’s participation in RGGI may only be achieved through legislation duly enacted by the Pennsylvania General Assembly, and not merely through the Rulemaking promulgated by" Pennsylvania regulators.

[1] https://cases.justia.com/pennsylvania/commonwealth-court/2023-247-m-d-2022.pdf?ts=1698852322