Malloy Not Bashful About Energy Policy, Both Past and Future
by Christine Stuart | Jun 3, 2010 5:00am
(1) Comment | Commenting has expired
Posted to: Election 2010
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Dan Malloy didn’t hold back his feelings Wednesday about Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell and the Democrat-controlled General Assembly’s decision to raid the energy conservation fund in order to balance the 2011 state budget.
“You can’t cut conservation funds by $30 million and still expect to meet aggressive standards with respect to efficiency,” Malloy said criticizing the decision to borrow close to $1 billion and pay it back over eight years with conservation funds paid for by Connecticut ratepayers.
He said if he was governor he would not have agreed to use ratepayer funds to balance the budget, however, the state is now stuck paying back those bonds over the next eight years with that fund.
Asked if he would attempt to find an alternative way to balance the budget starting in January 2011, Malloy said “as I understand it a condition of the bonds is that fee, so I don’t think I’d have the power to do it.”
“I’m not saying I wouldn’t do it if I had the power,” he added.
As far as the controversial, omnibus energy bill, which Rell vetoed, Malloy said there’s enough blame to go around on the bill, which came about during the last week of the legislative session.
“The governor would blame the legislature. I blame them both. Where was the governor’s leadership on this issue?,” Malloy said. “When it comes to energy policy this is a governor whose been more interested in playing the politics of it than driving the cost of energy down. I blame the governor as well as the making of sausage.”
He said he understands Rell’s criticism of the timing of the bill, which aims to create 300 megawatts of solar power. “Then, therefore, it should have been incumbent upon her to say we want to get to 300 but we want to go a little slower,” Malloy said.
“I think her veto was one of scale,” Malloy said “I think an appropriate leadership model would have effected that scale.”
Malloy’s energy plan on his campaign Web site says he would support reducing electricity rates by 15 percent, a goal included in the energy legislation Rell vetoed.
In her veto message Rell said the goal of reducing electricity rates by 15 percent is an “unproven” claim. “The bill does not specify how the reduction is to be achieved or which component of the rates will be reduced,” Rell wrote in her veto message.
But Malloy remained optimistic saying several times he believes it’s a goal the state can achieve.
Malloy’s energy plan also touts a proposal to increase the use of renewable energy sources 20 percent by 2020.
The legislature and Rell approved legislation in 2007 that already meets that goal.
“It’s a mistake - we forgot it had been signed into law,“ Malloy said after Wednesday’s press conference. “I know some in the oil industry have been fighting to roll it back, and I also believe insufficient steps have been taken by the state to insure that the requirement will be met. I’m glad it will be in place when I’m Governor, and I’ll fight to keep it in place.”
Malloy’s Democratic opponent, Ned Lamont, hasn’t held a press conference to announce his energy plan, but he addresses the issue on his Web site.
Malloy supporters say it’s not his understanding of load consumption and megawatts, but his leadership style.
“What we’re talking about here is a leadership style,” Sen. Donald DeFronzo, D-New Britain, said. “We have tens of millions of dollars allocated for these very purposes. Energy conservation, renewable energy, grants to residential homeowners for energy conservation and renewable energy sources going back to 200. These funds have been authorized but we have not had the executive leadership to move these funds out.”
“We need a governor who gets it,” Rep. Tim O’Brien, D-New Britain, said. “Not everybody’s going to agree on everything. It’s the job of the governor to pull everybody together and put together a strong policy for the future of the state.”
Comment
posted by: frankpanzarella | June 4, 2010 12:07pm
Dan Malloy is right to criticize the Governor and the legislature has procrastinated for 4 years, however he is wrong to criticize the current bill and process. Below is a letter that clarifies the position of Fight the Hike on this legislation. A very chopped up edited version of this letter was printed in the Register yesterday June 3rd, but here is the full commentary.
At a time when Americans are furious with corporate and banking bailouts and corruption Governor Rell has chosen to twist the knife in the backs of Connecticut ratepayers and taxpayers by vetoing the first genuine energy policy reform and rate relief.
It is bad enough that she pretended to be against new taxes while she imposed a not so hidden tax on us all. She did this by raiding the energy and efficiency fund which was established with our money to benefit businesses and homeowners.
Is it any wonder why the Republicans who tried to capitalize on tea-partyers concerns are now being ousted by angry people tired of being double-crossed by politicians slavishly protecting corporations, banks and Wall Street. It is a shame that the media are now busy parroting the poor excuse generated by the Republicans and others to justify the Governor’s action. They pretend that these issues had no chance for public debate by citing the final bill no. The truth is each of these issues has been debated for 4 years and was debated again in this session under a variety of bill numbers. The final bill SB493 was the last combining of these issues in an omnibus energy bill.
This is not a simple partisan issue, however; this is a matter of survival for American economic democracy. There are those on both sides of the aisle who want to maintain the status quo on energy. SB 493 is the first modest state step to putting rate-payer security first, diversifying our energy base, providing more transparency, and promoting clean solar, wind, hydro and other renewables that are overwhelmingly supported by the public.
Governor Rell and her lockstep republican legislators are attempting again to hold rate-payers hostage to business as usual. She is leaving and her legacy will be tainted not just as a leftover of the Rowland regime but as a Governor who chose Wall Street over Main Street. It is her cohorts in the legislature who will face taxpayer wrath in the coming elections.
A last and telling note occurring on the same day as the Governor’s veto is the recent purchase by UI of one of the main gas suppliers in the world. Yes, this is the same UI that only a year ago cried poverty and asked for an additional rate hike. Was the Governor aware of this, and if so, when? Is the game being fixed again with movement towards new and uncontrolled monopolies, and how could UI suddenly afford this buyout?
It is up to the legislature to provide the state with the right tools now and to press forward and protect small businesses and individual rate-payers by demanding and voting for an override of this shabby veto. The voters of Connecticut will be watching very closely and there isn’t enough tv ad money in the world to change our minds.
Frank Panzarella
On behalf of Fight the Hike