This week, the group Citizens for Pennsylvania’s Future, also known as “PennFuture,” released a report entitled ‘Buried Out of Sight: Uncovering Pennsylvania’s Hidden Fossil Fuel Subsidies’.
This Harrisburg-based organization is dedicated to lobbying against Pennsylvania energy and responsible use of natural resources. Interestingly, PennFuture – a registered not-for-profit organization – also has a nearly 40 percent ownership interest in a for-profit company that invests in energy efficiency and renewables. This ownership interest can pay PennFuture up to nearly $200,000 annually and begs questions about their impartiality.
With respect to their report, it is worth highlighting some of the examples that PennFuture regards as a ‘subsidy’ for Pennsylvania’s fossil fuel industry. Most of these ‘subsidies’ are in fact calls for higher taxes directly on Pennsylvania citizens – not businesses. For example, PennFuture considers these to be subsidies of Big Oil and Gas: