FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 9, 2022
CONTACT: Sarah Tresedder, sarah.tresedder@sierraclub.org
Committing to Renewable Energy for Michigan is the Real Solution to Gas Prices
Lansing, MI - Sierra Club Michigan condemns short-sighted Republican budget cuts that will keep Michigan reliant on the volatile fossil fuel market. Today, Republican Lawmakers in the House voted on a short-sighted bill that would repeal the state’s gas tax which would eliminate over $700 million annually from the state budget. This plan comes after the Michigan GOP already sent a tax cut plan totalling over $2.5 billion to the Governor’s desk last week.
Governor Whitmer’s MI Healthy Climate Plan is the direction we need to move in. The Governor’s plan moves Michigan away from fossil fuels towards a clean, renewable energy future. Eliminating the state’s gas tax will not solve the national security risk that comes with a continued dependence on foreign fossil fuels from warmongering dictators like Vladimar Putin.
“We must secure real energy independence by speeding up the production of cheaper, homegrown, renewable energy – like wind and solar, and electrified transportation – here in Michigan so we aren’t as impacted by foreign supply chain disruptions or conflicts overseas. That’s how we lower costs for families, provide stability to Michiganders and deliver energy security.” said Tim Minotas, Sierra Club Michigan’s Legislative and Political Coordinator, “However, if we move forward with this proposal this will only hinder our ability to make such investments and will only lock us into more dependence on fossil fuels.”
“Repealing the state gas tax does not protect Michigan in the short or long term from an unstable global fossil fuel economy.” said Christy McGillivray, Legislative and Political Director, “Michigan needs an economy that can sustain itself without foreign fossil fuels or tax cuts for the wealthy and big oil, who are perpetuating and exploiting this crisis in Ukraine to raise prices for record profits”