Blue-Green Caucus | Legislation

BLUE-GREEN CAUCUS LEGISLATION

House Blue-Green Caucus: 2025-26 Legislative Package

HB362 – Authorizing Solar for All (Fiedler)
This bill would release $156 million in Solar for All funds for use in Pennsylvania, bringing energy efficiency and lower utility bills to low-income homes. The program is fully funded by federal dollars.

HB705 – Transportation electrification planning (Webster)
This bill would support the use of electric vehicles (EVs) by creating a planning process for deploying charging infrastructure and ensuring continued reliability of the transmission and distribution network.

HB894 – Veterans entering sustainability sector program (Webster)
This bill would establish an apprenticeship training and workforce development program to support veterans seeking employment after service by connecting them with jobs in the sustainability sector.

HB1260 – Expanding Solar Energy Through E-Commerce Growth (Siegel)
This bill would require all new warehouses and distribution centers to be constructed solar-ready and provides a tax credit to retrofit existing facilities for the same purpose.

HB1556 – Advanced Clean Manufacturing Tax Credit (Fiedler)
This bill would create a tax credit to support businesses using advanced manufacturing processes that reduce energy consumption and emissions.

HB1580 – Workplace protections for extreme heat (Fiedler)
This bill would establish protections for workers in high-heat conditions, including paid rest breaks and education on the signs of heat illness.

Funding Mass Transit
Funding Pennsylvania’s transit systems would reduce pollution, create union jobs, and protect working people who rely on them to go to work and otherwise navigate the commonwealth.

Funding Solar for Schools
Renewing funding for the Solar for Schools grant program will bring solar panels to school buildings across Pennsylvania, reducing their reliance on fossil fuels, creating family-sustaining jobs, and saving them money on energy bills.

House Blue-Green Caucus: 2024 Legislative Package

HB491 – Expanding the Use of Mechanical Insulation in Energy Efficiency Programs (Young)
This bill would prohibit the Public Utility Commission from disapproving an energy efficiency and conservation plan due to the inclusion of mechanical insulation. This would allow electric distribution companies to continue work and prevent unnecessary waiting periods on energy efficiency projects.

HB949 – Prevailing Wage for Green Energy Projects (Fiedler)
This bill would mandate a prevailing wage on green energy projects that receive federal or state tax credits. Prevailing wage is already required on “construction,” but this bill would ensure prevailing wage is applied to projects like solar fields or electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

HB1032 – Solar for Pennsylvania Schools (Fiedler)
This bill would create a grant program withing DCED to help schools build solar arrays on their grounds. Up to 50% of the cost of construction would be covered by the bill, and schools would be eligible for a 30-50% reimbursement of the project costs through the federal Inflation Reduction Act.

HB1607 – Electronic Waste Recycling Program (Borowski)
This legislation would allow all counties within the state to participate in an e-waste recycling collection program. Residents would have access to convenient collection sites at no cost to themselves or their municipalities.

HB1615 – Appliance Energy Efficiency Standards (O’Mara)
This bill sets energy efficiency and water conservation standards for commercial and residential appliances sold in the Commonwealth. Adopting energy efficiency standards for appliances can help Pennsylvania tackle climate change, reduce air pollution, conserve water, and save consumers and businesses money on their utility bills.

HB1842 – Community Solar Legislation (Schweyer)
This bill creates a framework so that solar energy is more accessible and affordable for people throughout Pennsylvania. Under the bill, customers would be allowed to subscribe to a portion of a community solar facility with guaranteed savings.

HB1862, HB1863, HB1864, & HB1865 – Reforming Act 12 (Matzie, Borowski, Hanbidge, Kazeem, Krueger, O’Mara & Sappey)
This package of bills would put much-needed guardrails on public water and wastewater system acquisitions. The bills would limit acquisitions of healthy systems, ease the immediate burden on ratepayers by spreading out any costs incurred, provide the PUC with ample time to review sales, and place stringent notification requirements on both buyers and sellers from the formal inception of a sale.

Funding for Mass Transit
House Democrats and Governor Shapiro have proposed increasing the share of state sales tax collections devoted to public transit agencies from 4.4% of receipts to 6.15%. That would translate to an estimated increase of $283 million in the 2024-25 fiscal year on top of the $1.3 billion going to transit agencies this year.