State Sen. Joe Pittman, R-41st, said Gov. Tom Wolf does not have the ability to unilaterally say Pennsylvania will join the multistate Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, and he will introduce a bill soon challenging Wolf’s decision to do so.

As part of his effort to reduce the state’s greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to climate change, Wolf last month directed the state’s Department of Environmental Protection to join RGGI, a collaboration of nine Northeast and mid-Atlantic states that have set a cap on total carbon dioxide emissions from electric power generators.

Wolf says its cap-and-trade program will help cut carbon emissions that contribute to climate change. Pennsylvania, a net exporter of electricity, emits more greenhouse gases than all but three states.

Pittman is among lawmakers who have proposed a bill requiring legislative approval for the state to join RGGI. It also would require the DEP to have a public comment period, hold public hearings and submit its plan to the Legislature before joining the coalition.

“It’s a bill that makes it abundantly clear the governor does not have the ability to enter RGGI in the first place,” Pittman told National Public Radio. “And that if he wants to have a dialogue on entering RGGI, than he has to do it with us as part of the process.”

Whether Wolf can do this without legislative approval remains a gray area. The governor’s staff has pointed to language in the state’s air pollution act that gives the state DEP the power to enter such an alliance without approval of the General Assembly.

Pittman said the debate about climate change needs to be taken seriously, but Wolf’s decision “has much more to do with the authority vested in the General Assembly and accommodating the governor’s desired request for a collaborative process in deciding whether we move forward in joining RGGI.”

Pittman argues RGGI could have consequences beyond the state’s 19 coal-fired electric generating units, which represent nearly one-quarter of the state’s total electric generation capacity.

The nation’s coal production has steadily dropped in recent years due to our increased reliance on natural gas and some renewable energy to power the nation.

Pennsylvania is the nation’s No. 2 natural gas producer, and No. 3 in coal.

But the health of the state’s coal industry and climate change are not the issues here.

We agree with Pittman that Wolf overstepped his bounds with his decision and that the governor should have collaborated with the Legislature and industry officials before making such a lone-wolf decision.

Their dispute over whether the air-pollution law gives the governor proper authority could set the state up for a court fight if the DEP moves ahead without approval from the Legislature.

Coordination and collaboration between the governor and Legislature could have avoided a potential legal battle.