The Rhode Island Manufacturers Association has supported McKee’s plans, while environmental groups have blasted his proposals as “shortsighted.”

“Choosing between lower energy costs and addressing climate change is a false choice that Rhode Island cannot afford to make,” Foulkes said in a statement. “As governor, I’ll focus on cost-effective sources of renewable energy to meet our climate goals while working to lower costs for Rhode Islanders.”

In an interview, Foulkes noted that McKee signed the Act on Climate in 2021 while declaring that “the Ocean State is on the frontlines of the climate crisis.” But she said that since then, McKee has failed to implement a plan to ensure the state can meet the law’s mandatory deadlines to cut emissions to 45 percent below 1990 levels by 2030, and to “net-zero emissions” by 2050.

“Four years later, in another election, he is seizing on another political opportunity, and that is not leadership,” she said. “That is an example of what is missing for Rhode Islanders.”

McKee has noted that the Trump administration is gutting clean energy programs and incentives, making the cost of meeting the state’s climate goals challenging for Rhode Island ratepayers. He has said, “Rhode Island ratepayers should not pay the price for Trump’s chaos in Washington.”

Foulkes said, “Trump is an explanation, but he is not an excuse.”

“What’s maddening to me,“ she said, is that McKee was governor during President Joe Biden’s administration, which backed some of the largest investments in clean energy, climate-related projects, and infrastructure in history.

“If I was governor, I would have been leaning into the those investments” so Rhode Island would now be able to rely less on natural gas and more on wind and solar energy, Foulkes said. “That is what the governor failed to do, and now he is acting like he is saving us.”

In 2022, Rhode Island passed legislation requiring that 100 percent of electricity sold in the state comes from renewable sources such as wind and solar by 2033 — sooner than any other state in the country. McKee signed that bill, saying, “Here in the Ocean State, we know that action to address the climate crisis cannot wait.”

But now McKee has proposed pushing back the 2033 deadline to reach 100 percent renewable energy sources for state electricity until 2050. That change would account for more than half of the $1 billion in savings he’s projecting over five years.

McKee has emphasized that Rhode Island already has the fourth-highest residential electric rates in the country. Without moving the deadline, the Renewable Energy Standard charge on energy bills will quadruple by 2033, he said.

When asked if she would push back the 2033 deadline, Foulkes said, “I’m not setting an arbitrary goal. The governor has put us in a position where it’s nearly impossible to hit that date.”

She said McKee’s mistake was proudly declaring a 2033 deadline but then failing to put in place a plan to reach that goal. Last year, 89 percent of Rhode Island’s electricity came from natural gas, and the state ranked 44th in energy affordability, she said.

By contrast, renewable energy sources have proven to be the cheapest energy options available to meet rising energy demand, Foulkes said.

Under her plan, the state would audit Rhode Island Energy “to ensure that any proposed rate increases are warranted and that ratepayer dollars are being used efficiently.”

The plan calls for addressing the backlog of renewable projects that are trying to connect the power grid all across the country, including in Rhode Island.

She vowed to commit $40 million in state funding to expand program eligibility and reduce costs for individuals and small businesses to install solar and battery storage.

She called for installing solar and battery storage on 250 of Rhode Island’s schools and public buildings by the end of her second year in office.

And she said she would do everything she can “to push back against the Trump administration’s misguided efforts to shut down wind energy in Rhode Island.”

The McKee campaign issued a statement blasting Foulkes’ plan.

“Helena Foulkes has never had to choose between putting food on the table and keeping the lights on — and it shows,” campaign spokesperson Sophie Mestas said. “While Rhode Islanders struggle to keep up with soaring costs, her plan doesn’t identify a single dollar in real savings for working families.“

McKee fought back when Trump attempted to halt the $4 billion Revolution Wind project, which is expected to deliver enough electricity to power 350,000 homes in Rhode Island and Connecticut, Mestas said. Meanwhile, Foulkes “stayed silent,” she said.

McKee’s plan ensures that Rhode Island can expand renewable energy “while delivering real results for working families, she said.

The governor’s plan will provide $1 billion in lower supply and distribution charges over five years, including $572 million in ratepayer savings through Renewable Energy Standard reforms, ending bonus payments for utility shareholders, a $49 million solar grant already secured, and the single largest state investment in climate resiliency ever,” Mestas said.

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Edward Fitzpatrick can be reached at edward.fitzpatrick@globe.com. Follow him @FitzProv.