The House Republican Policy Committee Chaired by Rep. Dave Reed (R-Indiana) Friday held a hearing in Latrobe where a bipartisan group of state legislators heard from representatives of Pennsylvania’s coal industry about the positive impacts the sector has on the Commonwealth’s economy and potential roadblocks preventing additional job creation.
According to statistics offered at the hearing, approximately 45,000 Pennsylvanians are directly or indirectly employed by the coal industry. Some of those jobs may be endangered by excessive and overzealous federal environmental regulations.
“Coal has been and will continue to be a job creator and low-cost energy source in Pennsylvania,” said Rep. Reed. “I believe we must balance our economic needs with our environmental responsibilities. We can have good-paying jobs and clean air and water. For too long, this has been an either/or discussion. This hearing was about working together to find ways to reach the goals of job creation and environmental conservation.”
Testifiers associated with Pennsylvania’s coal industry highlighted their desire to continue providing good-paying jobs for local workers while generating low-cost electricity for Pennsylvania energy consumers.
During the hearing, legislators learned that, while coal-operated power plants have taken steps to become more environmentally friendly, existing and proposed federal regulations have impacted and will negatively affect the industry’s ability to continue creating new jobs while delivering affordable energy to customers. Read more… (House GOP Policy Committee Holds Hearing on Coal Issues.pdf)