Climate Jobs NY Statement Applauding Climate Action That Creates Good Union Jobs Signaled In Governor Hochul’s State Of The State Address
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 5, 2022
CONTACT: Jeff Vockrodt, Executive Director, jvockrodt@climatejobsny.org, 917-818-3143
CLIMATE JOBS NY STATEMENT APPLAUDING CLIMATE ACTION THAT CREATES GOOD
UNION JOBS SIGNALED IN GOVERNOR HOCHUL’S STATE OF THE STATE ADDRESS
In her State of the State address today, Governor Hochul signaled important steps forward on climate action that creates good union jobs, including significant investment in the offshore wind supply chain, movement toward necessary transmission upgrades, and much-needed investments in schools. We applaud these important steps forward and look forward to working with the Hochul administration in the budget process and beyond to ensure that these investments in climate action both reduce emissions and create good union jobs and careers for New Yorkers and their communities.
Commitments announced in conjunction with Governor Hochul’s address included:
Offshore wind
· Investing $500 million in critical offshore wind infrastructure, including ports, manufacturing, and supply chain infrastructure, projected to leverage more than $2 billion in private investments and create 2,000 jobs
· Moving forward on planning to upgrade the transmission grid to accommodate New York’s nation-leading goal of 9,000 megawatts of offshore wind power, bringing 6,000 megawatts of electricity into New York City, enough to power 4 million homes
· Launching the next solicitation for offshore wind power, expected to procure an additional 2,000 megawatts in new projects, enough to power 1.5 million homes
· Initiating a new Offshore Wind Master Plan 2.0 to continue building the offshore wind industry in New York
Investing in schools
· Expanding New York State’s Clean, Green Schools program to bring retrofits like geothermal heating and cooling, solar power, and upgrades to improve air quality and ventilation to more schools
Green Hydrogen
· Directing the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), New York Power Authority (NYPA), and Empire State Development to take steps to make New York a hub for green hydrogen, including competing for billions of dollars in federal funding to support green hydrogen research and development made available under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and releasing $27 million in NYSERDA Hydrogen Innovation
These announcements build on other recent steps taken by the Hochul administration, such as building out distributed solar power in New York with prevailing wage requirements on all projects above 1 megawatt, an important step toward building a high-road solar industry in New York.
Gary LaBarbera, President of the New York State Building & Construction Trades Council and Climate Jobs NY Director, said, “We applaud Governor Hochul for her continued commitment to creating good, middle-class careers in the sustainable economy. Her vision outlined today signals important investments in climate and jobs, from moving aggressively to secure New York’s place in the offshore wind industry to investing in green hydrogen research and development. We look forward to working with the Hochul administration to ensure all of these investments move forward successfully and create good union jobs and careers.”
Vincent Alvarez, President of the New York City Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO, and Climate Jobs NY Director, said, “We are encouraged to see today’s announcements on climate and jobs from Governor Hochul, which signal that the Governor is serious about meeting the State’s emissions-reduction goals, upgrading our infrastructure, and creating a clean-energy economy that works for everyone. We look forward to working with the Governor and her team to make sure the State’s investments in clean energy include strong labor standards and create the kind of good union jobs New Yorkers and our communities need.”
Michael Fishman, former Secretary-Treasurer of SEIU, President of the Climate Jobs National Resource Center, and Climate Jobs NY Director, said, “Governor Hochul’s commitment to increasing funding for upgrading school facilities is another step toward making much-needed investments in New York’s schools. The Climate Jobs National Resource Center is prioritizing Carbon Free and Healthy Schools in states across the country in order to address long-standing health and safety issues in schools, take on a major source of carbon emissions, create hundreds of thousands of good union jobs, and save schools millions in energy costs. Now is the time to take care of our children.”
Dennis Trainor, Vice President for CWA District One and Climate Jobs NY Executive Committee member, said, “We are encouraged to see Governor Hochul’s commitment to invest $500 million in offshore wind infrastructure. This is a smart investment for the State and will help secure New York’s role in the offshore wind supply chain while advancing our emissions-reduction goals. We look forward to working with the Hochul administration to ensure that these investments include labor standards and create good union jobs for New Yorkers.”
Henry Garrido, Executive Director of District Council 37, AFSCME, and Climate Jobs NY Educative Committee member, said, “We are glad to see Governor Hochul recognize the importance of investing in schools, and we look forward to building on the announcement today, which is a step forward. Our schools are in desperate need of upgrades. Outdated heating and cooling systems, for example, are contributing to overheated kitchens and making it harder to teach and learn. As we rebuild the economy and invest in infrastructure, now is the time to invest in our schools.”
Michael Mulgrew, President of the United Federation of Teachers, said, “We applaud Gov. Hochul's plan to invest in green schools and help create a cleaner, greener state. Our Carbon Free and Healthy Schools campaign has shown that we can build safer, healthier schools for students while at the same time reducing carbon admissions, creating high-paying union jobs and saving schools millions in energy costs.”
Jeff Vockrodt, Executive Director of Climate Jobs NY, said, “We are encouraged to see serious commitments to both climate action and good jobs in Governor Hochul’s announcements today. We look forward to working with the Governor and her administration in the budget process and beyond to make sure the State’s investments in climate action include strong labor standards and create good union jobs for New Yorkers. We also look forward to building on the State’s commitment to increase investments in school facilities, a step in the right direction toward making our schools healthy and carbon-free.”
ABOUT CLIMATE JOBS NY
Climate Jobs NY (CJNY) is a growing coalition of labor unions—representing more than 2.6 million working New Yorkers—united to combat climate change and reverse inequality. CJNY’s mission is to advocate for a clean energy economy at the scale climate science demands, create good union jobs, and support more equitable communities and a more resilient New York. CJNY’s members include the Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York, the New York State Building and Construction Trades Council, the New York City Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO, the New York State AFL-CIO, the Building and Construction Trades Council of Nassau and Suffolk Counties, the Long Island Federation of Labor, CWA District One, Utility Workers Union of America Local 1-2, International Union of Operating Engineers Local 30, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 3, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Third District, the United Association Plumbers and Pipefitters in New York State, 32BJ SEIU, the New York State Nurses Association, Laborers International Union Local 79, AFSCME District Council 37, the Transport Workers Union of America, Transport Workers Union Local 100, District Council 9 of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, the New York City District Council of Carpenters and Joiners of America, and the North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters.
# # #