March 28, 1998
FEDERAL ENERGY BUDGET AND TAXES
Renewable Caucus: Rep. Dave Weldon (R-FL) has joined the House Renewable Energy Caucus. However, another member, Rep. Steven Schiff (R-NM) died last week so total membership remains at 120 (58 R's, 61 D's, 1 I.) Let us know if you would like us to fax you a list of the complete membership.
ELECTRIC UTILITY RESTRUCTURING
1.) Murkowski v. Clinton: Reuters (March 25) reports that Senate Energy Committee Chairman Frank Murkowski (R-AK) said he would not hold hearings on utility restructuring legislation until the White House provides draft legislation. Noting that "DOE has yet to provide Congress with a specific legislative proposal," he said that he could begin hearings "when the administration is ready to provide actual language." Murkowski also complained that the White House plan did not include hydropower as a renewable energy source in its 5.5% Renewable Portfolio Standard and that it did not promote nuclear power as a source of smog-free electricity. However, CongressDaily subsequently reported that Murkowski plans to hold hearings on utility restructuring legislation sometime after the April recess, even if the Clinton Administration fails to make good on its promise to produce a bill of its own within a month's time. However, Murkowski said he considers it a "long, long shot" that restructuring legislation will make it through either the House or the Senate this year.
2.) Bliley/Restructuring: Public Citizen reports that House Commerce Committee Chairman Rep. Thomas Bliley (R-VA) is redoubling his efforts to have movement on the Schaefer restructuring bill. Uncommitted members on the Committee include Reps. Shimkus, Hall, Norwood, Upton, and Boucher.
2.) PUHCA/Nuclear Waste: Reuters (March 26) reports that Senator Larry Craig (R-ID) says the Senate may drop PUHCA repeal legislation if it becomes bogged down with amendments to restructure the U.S. electricity market. Instead, the Senate may concentrate on passing a bill in late April or early May to establish an "interim" high-level nuclear waste storage facility in Nevada.
3.) Restructuring/NW: Nancy Hirsh (Northwest Energy Coalition) sent us a 3-page executive summary of its "Federal Platform for a Clean and Affordable Northwest Energy Future" which outlines provisions they support in a Northwest title to a national electric utility restructuring bill. It addresses issues of renewable energy development, dam removal, the role of the Bonneville Power Administration, protection of fish and wildlife, consumer protection, and energy efficiency. Let us know if you would like us to fax you a copy. A copy of the full 21-page report can be requested from Nancy at 206-621-0094 (nancy@nwenergy.org).
4.) Restructuring/Environmental Harm: Public Citizen and Friends of the Earth issued a 2-page news release on March 25 warning that "deregulation of the electric utility markets in the U.S. is leading to devastating environmental harm [including] forest liquidation and clear-cutting, more destructive river dams, and increased air pollution." Let us know if you would like us to fax you a copy.
5.) Fair Competition: The American Public Power Association has announced the formation of the "Coalition for Really Fair Electricity Competition" which advocates that "consumers -- especially individual taxpayers, small businesses, non-profit organizations, and local communities -- receive lower electricity rates and better services through fair practices and greater competition." The Coalition is comprised of APPA and 12 municipal utilities nationwide. The group has developed its own model restructuring legislation, "The Enlightened and Empowered Electric Consumers Act of 1998." Information on the coalition and its model bill can be requested from Michael Nolan (202-467-2930).
6.) Renewable Assn: Six renewable power marketers have formed a new non-profit trade association called the Renewable Energy Alliance to "ensure the benefits offered by renewable power are realized in the new energy markets." The founding members include AllEnergy Marketing Co, Edison Source, Enron Corp., Foresight Energy Company, Green Mountain Energy Resources, and PacifiCorp. The REA supports efforts to require uniform environmental disclosure for all power products and intends to work with the National Association of Attorneys General to develop advertising guidelines for power marketers. For details, contact Linda Latham (REA) at 562-438-2287; LDLatham@worldnet.att.net.
7.) Green-e: The Green-e Renewable Electricity Program has launched a web site ,www.green-e.org. and toll-free number 1-888-63-GREEN to provide Californians information about their green power options now that the electricity market is formally open to competition. Green-e, a project of the non-profit Center for Resource Solutions, "provides customers a means to quickly identify electricity products that meet an objective standard for renewable energy supply; products certified by Green-e undergo an annual audit to verify that customers get the renewable energy they pay for."
8.) Restructuring Site: The Energy Information Administration is providing a status report as of March 2, 1998 on state restructuring efforts at https://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/chg_str/tab5rev.html
CLIMATE CHANGE
1.) February/Warmest: AP-Dow Jones (March 30) reports that the World Meteorological Organization says that February 1998 was the world's warmest since global record-keeping began in 1856. The average air temperature around the world was 0.75 degree Celsius (1.35 F) above normal for the month. The average temperature for the United States for the month of February was the sixth warmest on record.
2.) Illinois/Kyoto: The Sierra Club reports that the Illinois House of Representatives has rejected HB.2940 which would bar Illinois from taking any action to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. The bill had been supported by the Illinois Coal Association, the Illinois Petroleum Council, the Chemical Industry Council, Commonwealth Edison, Illinois Power, the Illinois Manufacturers Association, and others. However, the battle may not be over as the bill was put on "postponed consideration," meaning that it could come up for a vote again in this coming week.
3.) CAFE: Ozone Action is circulating a petition to the major car companies to stop global warming by producing more fuel efficient and zero/low emissions cars. It can be found at www.ozone.org (follow the link to the petition) or contact Erich Zimmermann at 202-265-6738 or erich@ozone.org for further information.
MISCELLANEOUS
1.) Solar/Arizona: It took just six weeks for Arizona Public Service Company (APS) to sign up enough people (i.e., 450 customers) willing to pay higher bills to fund a pilot 82-kilowatt solar power plant in Tempe scheduled to open on April 17. The "solar partners" have agreed to purchase electricity from the $750,000 plant in 100-watt increments (i.e., enough to run a television for five hours/day for a month) at $3 each, or about double the rate of traditionally generated electricity. The company initially planned to build a 42-kW plant but so many people wanted to help support it that another 20 kW of capacity was added and then another 20 kW. The solar partners will pay about one-third of the cost to build the plant; DOE grants will pick up another third, and APS is paying the balance. APS is moving ahead with plans to build two more plants, possibly in Glendale and Scottsdale, a second facility in Flagstaff, and plants in Prescott and Yuma. The utility is under an Arizona Corporate Commission ruling to have 1% of the total kilowatt-hours provided to customers come fromsolar sources by 2003.
2.) California/Photovoltaics: The California Energy Commission, using money from a $75 million fund raised through a charge on electric bills, will refund consumers up to half the cost of installing a home photovoltaic system. With the rebate, it will take 10-15 years for the system to pay for itself by saving the cost of the average $65 monthly electric bill. Equipping a 2,000-square-foot home will cost $12,000 - $25,000. Net metering enables owners to sell excess power back to the utility and pay only for the electricity provided to them by the utility. The Energy Commission has already received application for about $3 million in rebates. It should be noted that the $75 million fund is for 'Emerging Technologies' not just PV, and the funds can be used to support fuel cells, small wind systems of 10 kW or less and some solar thermal systems. The Emerging Technologies fund was established to provide support for technologies that could not compete or would not benefit from the funding that was set up to support current renewables projects (the Existing fund) or new renewables generation (the New fund). An auction is in process that will allow developers to bid for the $162 million available in the New Renewable Resources fund.
3.) Washington/Net Metering: Washington Governor Gary Locke has signed into law a bill requiring Washington utilities to offer "net metering" to small solar, wind, or hydro systems of less than 25 kW. Only systems meeting national standards for safety and power quality can qualify. For details, contact the Renewable Northwest Project, attn: Rachel Shimshak at 503-223-4544.
4.) Geothermal Heat Pumps: The Energy Information Administration reports that geothermal heat pumps are penetrating the market with 155,406 units shipped during the period 1994 through 1996. Aggregated data and a description of how geothermal heat pumps operate are available on EIA's Web site at: https://www.eia.doe/gov/cneaf/solar.renewables/renewable.energy.annual/rea97/geo_heat_pump/geoweb.html. Business Wire (March 31) reports that Bear Creek Springs Community, the first exclusively GeoExchange planned community and 18-hole golf course in the United States, will be built this year in the Ozark Mountains north of Harrison, AR. The GeoExchange system will use lake water as the geothermal source for providing hearing and air conditioning for approximately 950 home sites and will also irrigate the golf course and serve as a supply for the fire protection system.
5.) Wind/Permitting: The National Wind Coordinating Committee has released the "Permitting of Wind Energy Facilities: A Handbook" designed to help decision-makers to assure necessary environmental protection and respond to public needs, thereby avoiding costly court challenges and allowing wind to be a competitive electrical generation resource. The handbook's full text can be found at www.nationalwind.org/pubs/pubs.htm; for a 3-page executive summary, call Heather Rhoads at 202-965-6398.
6.) Earth Day/Polluters: Frank O'Donnell (Clean Air Trust) reports that more than 130 manufacturers and industry groups, led by the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), plan to tout their environmental "innovations" at a "technology showcase" on the National Mall on Earth Day, April 22. Frank points out, however, that NAM spent millions of dollars last year trying to block new clean air standards and its members are also opposing efforts to deal with global warming.
7.) Home Efficiency: The Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory has information for homeowners on residential energy efficiency options at https://eande.lbl.gov/HES/.
UPCOMING MEETINGS
1.) Town Meeting: Renew America is hosting a national town meeting live via satellite on "Global Warming: Local Solutions" on April 22 beginning at 12:15 p.m. The interactive national video teleconference will feature panelists with expertise in industrial ecology, environmental design and technology, architecture, planning, and local government. For info, call Betsy Goodrich at 202-232-2252.
FEDERAL ENERGY BUDGET & TAXES
1.) Renewables Squeeze: FY'99 funding for the Department of Energy's (DOE) renewable energy programs is facing stiff competition in the House Energy & Water Appropriations Subcommittee. In particular, Congress wants to fund water projects at levels higher than the Administration's request. In addition, DOE and Vice President Gore strongly support the $157 million Spallation Neutron Source and the nuclear physicist community is aggressively lobbying Congress for a $12 million increase over the Administration's request.
2.) Science Committee: The House Science Committee is calling for increased research funding but expressing concern over President Clinton's proposal to fund research with tobacco money and tax increases. The Committee stressed that tax dollars should be invested in "long-term, high-risk, non-commercial" programs while "marketing and commercialization of a product should be left to the private sector." In particular, the Committee's Republican majority is criticizing the proposed increase of $331 million for the Administration's Climate Change Technology Initiative (CCTI) because they are "focused on near-term commercialization and market promotion efforts that are best left for the private sector." The Committee "intends to increase support for DOE's long-term, high-risk, high-quality research and development activities, while simultaneously reducing funding for near-term, low-risk research, and for its commercialization and marketing efforts." However, the Committee's Democratic Minority said it "strongly supports the thrust and goals of the CCTI program because in addition to reducing the threat of climate change, such technology development would also benefit other key areas, such as decreasing the Nation's dependence on foreign oil, increasing air quality, and reducing the price of energy." A copy of the Committee's "Views and Estimates" report is available on the Committee's website at: www.house.gov/science/welcome.htm.
3.) Budget Defense: The Sustainable Energy Coalition has issued a 2-page factsheet "Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency: Building a Better Tomorrow - Today" outlining the argument for increased federal funding of sustainable energy programs. Let us know if you would like us to fax you a copy e-mail.
ELECTRIC UTILITY RESTRUCTURING
1.) Restructuring Plan: In case you have not yet found it, the Administration's restructuring plan can be found on the Internet at www.doe.gov. The site includes a news release, the plan itself, a summary, and a set of questions and answers. The White House says its plan would save consumers $20 billion a year or about $232 per year for the average family of four. The plan "provides for consumer choice by January 1, 2003 but allows states to opt out of the competitive market structure;" "encourages states to provide for recovery of stranded costs, supporting their fundamental authority in these matters;" "requires all utility companies to disclose, in a standard format, ... information on prices, terms, conditions, and the environmental impact of the electric power being sold;" "established a Renewable Portfolio Standard to ensure that at least 5.5% of all electricity sales includes generation from non-hydro renewable energy sources by 2010;" "establishes a Public Benefits Fund of 1 mil/kWh to provide matching funds of up to $3 billion to states for low-income assistance, energy-efficiency programs, research and development, and renewable technologies;" "gives EPA authority to provide interstate nitrogen oxide trading authority" from power plants (but no specific level) under a cap and trade system but not CO2, SOx, or mercury]; and "makes all consumers eligible for net metering and requires that all distribution service providers assure the availability of interconnection, subject to appropriate nondiscriminatory safety standards."
2.) Responses: Member groups of the Sustainable Energy Coalition issued diverse comments on the Clinton restructuring plan. The Alliance to Save Energy "applauded the consumer benefits in the Administration utility restructuring proposal" and believes "this proposal will advance the climate change goals outlined in Kyoto." Similarly, the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy said "the public benefits fund proposal is very constructive." However, the Union of Concerned Scientists said the "Administration dropped the ball and failed to protect the climate or aggressively promote clean energy." The National Hydropower Association said the plan was "extremely disappointing for excluding the single largest source of renewable energy, hydroelectricity ... small hydro should be recognized and encouraged in a renewable portfolio standard." The Safe Energy Communication Council noted that the plan "creates a loophole that will allow states to continue to bailout their own utilities at the consumer's expense." SUN DAY called the plan "a major disappointment that offers only weak support for sustainable energy technologies and will do little to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while exposing consumers to a massive nuclear bailout." Let us know if you would like us to fax you a copy of any of these releases e-mail.
3.) APPA/EIA: A 1-page news release from the American Public Power Association summarizes comments it sent to the Energy Information Administration urging EIA to collect and disseminate more -- not less -- information as the electric utility industry restructures. APPA says that "the electric utility industry's history of monopolistic abuses combines with the key role electricity plays in the economy to create the need for available, reliable data on the industry and its participants." If you want a copy of the comments, call Becky Blood (APPA) at 202-467-2929.
4.) California/Restructuring: Business Wire (March 19) reports that Harvey Rosenfeld (who authored the successful 1988 insurance reform Proposition 103) and Nettie Hoge (head of The Utility Reform Network) have launched a campaign for a new 1998 ballot initiative to provide a 20% rollback in California utility rates. The initiative would also reverse the automatic $28 billion utility stranded costs bailout tax and prevents the utilities from passing on to consumers the burden of paying for their past bad investments in nuclear power. Let us know if you would like us to fax you a copy of the 4-page news article describing the initiative e-mail.
5.) Massachusetts/Restructuring: Utility deregulation supporters have asked the Massachusetts Ballot Law Commission to throw out a ballot question that would ask voters to rescind the current energy restructuring law. They claim some of the referendum signatures were forged, the format of the petitions did not meet constitutional requirements, and that the petition signers did not understand what they were signing.
6.) Oregon/Restructuring: Reuters (March 19) reports that the Oregon Public Utility Commission has reserved the right to limit the amount of stranded costs electric utilities would be able to recover if the states decides to deregulate the industry. OPUC is laying the groundwork for the next round of legislative negotiations expected to begin sometime after January 1999.
7.) Iowa/New Metering: Iowa SEED reports that the Iowa Senate voted 42-0 on March 17 in favor of net metering legislation (Senate File 2390), while the Iowa Utilities Board withdrew a December draft order to eliminate its net metering rule. The latter has allowed utility customers who have installed alternate energy electricity generators to effectively sell any excess power back to the local utility by feeding it into the electricity grid and running their meter backwards. The Senate bill can be found at https://www.legis.state.ia.us.
8.) Stranded Costs/Pennsylvania: On March 25, two administrative law judges recommended that the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission deny the proposed merger between Duquesne Light and Allegheny Power. The judges also recommended that the PUC deny both companies much of their requests for bailing out their stranded costs. On the Allegheny Power case, the judges refused all but 16% of the proposed stranded costs . On the Duquesne case, the judges recommended a number of cuts to stranded costs with the final amount still to be calculated. The long decision (nearly 200 pages) is available on the Internet at: https://puc.paonline.com/electric/Restruct_Decisions.htm.
9.) California Green Products: The Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory has issued a 2-page table summarizing the retail green power products to be offered in California when the state opens its electricity market on March 31. It includes company & product name, pricing, resource mix, contract term information, and whether it is "Green-e certified." Let us know if you would like us to fax you a copy e-mail.
10.) Restructuring Bills: If you are looking for information on federal utility restructuring legislation, check out https://www.utilityguide.com (see "law and politics" section).
CLIMATE CHANGE
1.) CO2/Restructuring: The Administration estimates that its restructuring plan will cut greenhouse gas emissions by 25 - 40 million metric tons annually by 2010. However, Dr. Daniel Lashof of the Natural Resources Defense Council says that carbon emissions from the power sector are projected to increase by about 30% from 477 MMT in 1990 to 620 MMT in 2010 with the Administration's restructuring plan; meeting the Kyoto protocol's goals would require reducing carbon emissions to 443 MMT by 2010.
2.) Climate Poll: The World Wildlife Fund has released a new poll on climate change issues conducted January 30. It found that 72% of the 1,014 respondents had heard "at least some" about the climate change issue and 56% say this problem is at least a "somewhat serious" threat today. A majority (53%) continue to support unilateral action on the part of the U.S. to take action to reduce emissions regardless of what other countries do. A majority (52%) also are in favor of the U.S. signing the Kyoto treaty while only 8% are opposed; however, 41% are undecided on the agreement. More than a quarter (27%) say the agreement does not go far enough while another quarter (26%) believe the protocol's provisions "seem about right." A plurality (26%) believe the government has "the most important role to play" in fixing this problem followed by business and industry (24%) and by individual consumers (11%); another 24% say all three must share responsibility equally. More details on the poll results can be found at: https://www.panda.org/climate/newpoll.shtml.
MISCELLANEOUS
1.) Environmental Film Festival: The sixth annual Environmetnal Film Festival, a collaborative operation involving numerous organizations, is being held in Washington, D.C. from March 27 to April 5. For details on films, locations, and sponsors, check the Festival's Internet site at: https://www.capaccess.org/eff or call 202-342-2564.
2.) Renewable Energy Fair: The Ninth Annual Midwest Renewable Energy Fair is planned for June 19-21 at the Portage County Fairgrounds in Amherst, WI featuring hundreds of workshops, speakers, exhibits, and demonstrations. Ralph Nader is a featured speaker on June 20 (1:30 pm). For more information, call 715-824-5166; https://www.msn.fullfeed.com/~hulet.