Governors in the northeast are zeroing in on the offshore wind sector this Labor Day Weekend. Governors Dan McKee, Ned Lamont, and Maura Healey issued a joint statement calling all physical laborers the backbone of the economy.
“Nowhere is that clearer than in the offshore wind industry, where labor is on the front lines. Today, more than 5,000 workers—many of them proud union members—are directly engaged with building this new American industry, with many thousands more manufacturing products across 40 states that will help lead to a new era of U.S. energy independence. These projects represent years of planning, billions of dollars in private investment, and the promise of tens of thousands of additional jobs. They are revitalizing our ports, strengthening our supply chains, and ensuring that America—not our competitors—leads in clean energy manufacturing and innovation.”
They went on to say labor is on the front lines in the offshore wind industry, with five thousand workers directly involved in building, what they say, will be a new American industry across dozens of states.
“We are looking for the Trump Administration to uphold all offshore wind permits already granted and allow these projects to be constructed. Efforts to walk back these commitments jeopardize hardworking families, wasting years of progress and ceding leadership to foreign competitors. Workers, businesses, and communities need certainty, not reversals that would cost tens of thousands of American jobs and critical investment. Sudden reversals would also impact countless other workers and taxpayers on scores of non-energy public projects. The U.S. markets operate on certainty. Canceling projects that have already been fully permitted—including some near completion—sends the worrisome message to investors that the work can be stopped on a whim, which could lead them to decide to either not finance different projects or impose higher interest rates that would ultimately place a bigger burden on taxpayers.”
The governors called on the Trump Administration to uphold offshore wind permits that have already been granted and allow construction to continue.
They also reaffirmed their unwavering support to working people and the unions that represent them.
(Photo by ROMAIN COSTASECA/Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty Images)
Photo: ROMAIN COSTASECA / AFP / Getty Images