On April 25, Matt Smith, President of the Greater Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce issued this statement on pending legislation to provide financial aid to Pennsylvania's nuclear power plants (House Bill 11, Senate Bill 510)--
“The Greater Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce, the advocacy arm of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development, stands in opposition to the current legislative proposals designed to support the continued operation of nuclear power plants across the Commonwealth (HB 11, SB 510). "These proposals will stifle future job creation and cripple our ability to attract and retain business investment due to the higher cost of doing business that would result. We also believe these proposals fall short of fulfilling our state’s and region’s need for diverse and economical energy.
“One key pillar of our agenda is support for a more competitive operating environment for employers.
"The proposed legislation would in effect tip the scales toward support of one energy sector and interrupt the natural flow of free and competitive markets, making electricity more expensive for consumers and businesses alike.
"This added cost of doing business in Pennsylvania sends the wrong message to those we are seeking to attract and retain.
"The opportunity lost in future job creation, due to an unfavorable business climate, far outweighs any short-term, temporary fix these proposals purport to create.
“For the past year, the Allegheny Conference – working with partners in the business, academic, government, non-profit and philanthropic communities – has developed a set of sustainability principles designed to guide our region in maintaining a thriving economy while enhancing our environment and quality of place.
"We believe we can have both improved economic growth and quality of life.
"We’ve assessed the current legislative proposals through this sustainability framework, which embraces both of these objectives, and concluded that the proposals do not strike the right balance between a healthy environment and a healthy economy.
"For this reason and those outlined above, we oppose this legislation.”
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