After three months of debate, rhetoric and political power plays, state lawmakers reached an agreement this week to stave off a 72 percent electricity rate increase, but Republicans remained unhappy with the compromise.
The plan, which calls for a 15 percent cap on rate increases for the next 11 months and a complete restructuring of the Public Service Commission, passed both the Senate and the House of Delegates by veto-proof majorities. It drew support mostly from Democrats, though 15 Republicans split with the party and supported the bill in the House.
Republican Gov. Robert Ehrlich wouldn?t say Thursday whether he would veto the bill, but said he would hold public hearings early next week to gather more information. The governor has six days, excluding Sunday, to either veto or sign the bill.
“We agreed on a comprehensive sex offender initiatives, but lawmakers fell short of their obligations to BGE customers,” Ehrlich said in a statement Thursday. “I have grave reservations about a plan that forces 1 million Marylanders to pay $109 million in interest while giving back to BGE $220 million that I had secured for customers.”
Republicans had largely argued against breaking up the Public Service Commission and criticized the proposal to force all Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. customers into the rate cap plan.
“For the last two or three days, I got e-mails from lots of people saying, ?I don?t want to be able to opt in or opt out,? and I agreed with them,” said Sen. Janet Greenip, R-Anne Arundel, who voted against the bill. “Either we want the free market or regulation, and it doesn?t look like we?re getting close to the free market at the rate we?re going.”
But Sen. Sandy Schrader, R-Howard County, voted for the compromise, saying that was what her constituents wanted.
“It keeps the electric supply healthy so we couldn?t be affected, so we wouldn?t have to worry about brownouts or blackouts,” she said. “At this point in time, something had to be done. We didn?t have much of a choice. It was this or nothing at all.”
Carroll County lawmakers, all Republicans, blasted the bill, saying ratepayers would be burdened with 10 years of “interest payments” to BGE in the form of a flat $2.19 carrying charge, and accused Democrats of demonizing the PSC.
“The PSC were usedas scapegoats,” said Sen. Allan Kittleman, R-Carroll. “It?s wrong to fire people who really had no say in the rate increase.”
