The group said this week that it voted unanimously in a recent annual board meeting to contest the climate change legislation, also known as the Waxman-Markey bill or HR 2454. It feels the proposal was designed to sway US energy use away from coal, which not only would increase electricity costs but also cause significant job losses.
"With this pending bill, there is no limit to how deeply this process can reach into the pockets of our people, our businesses, education institutions, medical establishments and government entities," said PCA president George Ellis, leader of the large group which includes the state’s coal operators.
"It will pick the pockets of every resident, while reducing our tax revenues to pay for uncertain returns in global emission reductions."
Ellis pointed to recent National Association of Manufacturers research which forecasts a 41% jump in electricity costs in the state by 2030, significant considering coal is currently the source of 56% of Pennsylvania’s power generation and a major contributor to its industrial sector.
The same study said the legislation could leave between 71,500 and 97,500 people in the state without jobs by 2030 due to energy cost hikes that would be a consequence of the bill.
"While people may not realize it, the average person consumes the equivalent of 20 pounds of coal a day for their energy needs for lights, electronics and other essentials of our daily lives," Ellis said.
"To the extent any legislation unnecessarily drives up the cost of this commodity or makes it scarcer, it will be a financial burden for Pennsylvanians."
Pennsylvania, the fourth-largest US coal producer, supported 49,100 direct and indirect jobs in the mining industry last year. Those workers took home more than $US2.2 billion in paychecks in 2008, equating to local, state and federal taxes of more than $700 million, the association noted.
The state is home to some of the largest active underground mines, including Consol’s Bailey and Enlow Fork, and Alpha Resource Partners’ Emerald operation, all of which helped to provide about 7% of the country’s total production in 2006.
