Virginia conservation and consumer protection groups on Thursday launched a final push for major changes to the state’s proposed electricity re-regulation, panning the complicated bill as environmentally harmful and a burden to rate-payers.
Commonly referred to as “re-reg,” the bill would end less than a decade of electricity deregulation and remove the ability of most Virginia residents to seek suppliers other than Dominion Virginia Power. It would end a state-mandated rate cap two years early, in 2008, and provide incentives for new plant construction.
Next to the state’s transportation funding package, the electric legislation is the most controversial on the governor’s desk this year. Concerns over the bill have been boiling since it surfaced last year in the General Assembly, and the news conference Thursday represents a final push to persuade the governor to seriously amend the bill before signing it into law. Gov. Tim Kaine’s deadline to act on the bill is Monday.
“Will the governor step up to the plate and protect consumers and the environment from what Dominion has done?” asked Mike Tidwell, executive director or the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, one of the 12 groups asking for amendments.
Although the bill would allow the State Corporation Commission a degree of oversight over Dominion’s profits, critics say it still would net enormous earnings for the company. The amendments would mandate a program to attain greater energy efficiency and new investments in renewable energy, and broaden the SCC’s control over profits.
“This bill does not really have a lot of incentives to either have increases in renewable power, or have incentives for reducing the demand of our current traditional power,” said Arlington Board Chairman Paul Ferguson.
Dominion spokesman David Botkins wrote The Examiner in an e-mail Thursday: “The re-regulation bill is a good balance of renewable energy and efficiency initiatives as well as construction to address all the energy needs of Virginia.”
