Republican Gov. Phil Scott said Friday he will veto a bill passed by the Legislature that aims to help the state reduce greenhouse gas emissions by encouraging Vermonters to move away from fossil fuels to heat their homes.
Scott said in a statement he shares the goal of the Affordable Heat Act, known as S.5, but he believes the legislation would give too much authority to the unelected Public Utilities Commission and could end up punishing Vermonters who are least able to afford to switch. “For these reasons and more, I will veto S.5, and I’m asking Vermonters, even the many who have already contacted their legislators, to make their voices heard and ask their representatives and senators to sustain this veto,” he said.
The promised veto of the bill, which got final approval Thursday, sets up a showdown with Democratic lawmakers. They have a veto-proof majority in both the House and Senate, but it’s unclear if all would vote to override.Sign up for NECN newsletters.House Speaker Jill Krowinski said this week, before this year’s bill received final legislative approval, that Scott and others were spreading misinformation about it, especially that Vermonters would soon be unable to afford to heat their homes.
Krowinski said in a statement that the legislation is intended to provide relief from increases in fuel costs and create incentives to help low- and moderate-income residents weatherize their homes and diversify how they heat them.