Gov. Kathy Hochul’s performance on handling the state's climate crisis did not receive good marks from one climate action group.

Climate Can’t Wait, a collaborative of several climate groups, released a "report card” on the governor's progress Tuesday. They gave Hochul a "D-minus" for her performance so far.

“Climate Can’t Wait really thought it was time to hold the governor accountable and grade her,” said Ruth Foster, who was a part of the effort.

Foster told Spectrum News 1 the group averaged individual grades across categories, slamming the governor for making inadequate progress on lowering emissions, failing to hold state agencies to the standards set in the climate act, generating inadequate funding and her decision to pause congestion pricing, among other items.

“She stalls action and she sits on things. She likes to talk like a climate leader but she doesn’t act like one,” Foster said.

As for what Hochul can do to improve, Foster said the governor should sign the climate bills coming across her desk from this past session, including the Climate Change Superfund Act, and focus on expanding the climate budget by implementing cap and invest.

“She must provide funds to implement the CLCPA. She should get her cap and invest program up and running. She needs to immediately put out directives to her state agencies,” Foster said.

Ken Girardin, research director for right-leaning Empire Center, fired back that the group's budgetary demands are not a realistic response to what he called unrealistic goals. He insisted that New York is making progress on reducing emissions and warned that the state simply spending more money ignores economic realities. 

“Saying that we can just reach further into taxpayers' pockets to finance them, you have completely separated from reality” he said. “If you want to separate climate goals from the fiscal effects of those climate goals, there is no limiting principle, there’s nothing stopping you from simply doubling the state budget.”

In response to the report, Gov. Hochul’s office pointed out that this year’s state budget includes climate initiatives and pointed to progress that has been made.

"Since taking office, Governor Hochul has implemented some of the nation's strongest actions on climate, including securing a $4.2 billion Environmental Bond Act, advancing zero emission new construction, and making historic investments in large-scale renewable energy and transmission infrastructure,” the governor’s office told Spectrum News 1 in a statement. “We're going to continue forging into a clean energy future to help protect our climate and our environment and we will continue our ongoing efforts to build a clean energy economy and tackle the climate crisis."