Statement from the Northeast Hearth, Patio and Barbecue Association in response to MA Senate Climate Bill

8 April 2022

April 9, 2022

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Statement from the Northeast Hearth, Patio and Barbecue Association in response to MA Senate Climate Bill

Sudbury, MA – The Northeast Hearth, Patio and Barbecue Association (NEHPBA) released the following statement today:

The Massachusetts Senate Climate Bill is a major disappointment and a framework for severe disruption and job loss in the building and construction industry, significant inconveniences to homeowners and commercial property owners, and higher electric power rates that will hurt everyone. All of these negative impacts and economic injuries would result from a bill that guarantees more usage of dirty fuels such as coal and oil to generate electricity during peak demand periods.

Banning fossil fuel primary heating sources and mandating electric power in all new construction is bad policy. These types of mandates and policies demonstrate a lack of vision by the authors of this Senate bill, and acquiescence to that myopic approach by all those who voted to approve it.

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts needs a visionary approach to achieving our climate goals - an end result that the members of Northeast Hearth Patio & Barbecue Association strongly support. That means having a broad scope of options available to reduce building emissions. It means holding all energy producers accountable for decarbonizing their processes and fuels - not banning them. And it means the preservation of true energy diversity, so that major economic harm is not the unintended result.

About the Northeast Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association

Since 1985, the Northeast Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association (NEHPBA) has represented the interests of the hearth industry in the Northeast. NEHPBA was originally incorporated in January 1985 as the Northeast Solid Fuel Alliance (NESFA) in recognition of the unique demands of business in the Northeast. In June of 1992, NESFA members voted to become the first affiliated member of the national Hearth Products Association (HPA) and became the Northeast Hearth Products Association (NEHPA). In 2002, NEHPA became the Northeast Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association (NEHPBA) in conjunction with the merger of the national HPA with the Barbecue Industry Association to become the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association (HPBA), thus recognizing the diversification of the modern industry. The NEHPBA name has remained since 2002.

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