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Bill Plugs Into Savings
[New Britain Herald]
There it is again, the word “deregulation,” followed by dire consequences for the consumer.
Describing the energy bill that the state Legislature has sent to Gov. M. Jodi Rell for her signature, the Connecticut Mirror noted that a “deregulated electric industry ... has given Connecticut the nation’s second-highest electric rates.”
(Attorney General Richard Blumenthal says they’re the highest in the continental United States.)
The comprehensive new bill, which is supported by environmental groups and AARP, contains, according to AARP, “important consumer and ratepayer relief provisions including measures reforming the procurement of electricity that sets a goal of reducing rates by 15 percent.”
And it includes special provisions for low-income households, according to AARP. The bill establishes a discount electric rate funded through existing low-income programs.
The proposed law also reorganizes and renames the Public Utilities Control Authority as the Connecticut Energy and Technology Authority and gives it added responsibility for promoting new technologies and renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind and hydro-power. With both Rhode island and Massachusetts ahead of us in developing wind power, this addition makes sense, even if traditional power companies oppose it.
The sweeping nature of the bill makes its many provisions, some aimed at supporting clean energy and conservation, too numerous to mention here but they were important enough to bring out the lobbyists in droves.
Still, we hear that Gov. Rell still has doubts about whether to sign it.
We hope she listens to Brenda Kelly, the state director of AARP, who told CTMirror, “We’ve heard the complicated explanations from the utility companies and retail suppliers for why our bills are so high, but now is not the time to explain away the problem — it’s time to fix it.”
We ask Gov. Rell to hear Ms. Kelly — and the millions of seniors she represents. |
