ALBANY, New York — Three prominent environmental justice leaders criticized Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul for failing to prioritize climate action as they resigned from a state panel Tuesday.
The resigning members of the Climate Justice Working Group, which was created by the 2019 climate law and consists of some agency heads and environmental justice members selected by the governor, wrote in a letter that they could no longer serve “in good conscience” and cited Hochul’s “backpedaling and her lack of vision, commitment and focus.”
Why it matters: The resignations signal a breaking point with the governor for some in the environmental justice community, although they’ve often pushed for Hochul to do more to ensure an equitable transition to clean energy.
“We are not sure what will convince the Governor to act urgently as we come out of a drought that led to over 200 brush fires in New York and as neighborhoods burn in California,” wrote the three advocates. “We are resigning because we, sadly, no longer see a path forward working with a Governor who fails to center the health and priorities of environmental and climate justice communities and falters to do hard, but right things for our communities.”
