| March enters like a lion and exits like a lamb. Maybe. We enter March under a storm of attacks in state legislatures on market competition by the old guard monopoly utilities. The Arizona House passed HB2101 last week, sending it to the Senate for floor consideration. The Senate is expected to vote on its version of the bill, SB1631, later this week. It hasn’t been brought up yet is a sign the sponsors may not yet have the vote. There’s still time to press Arizona senators to spike the bill and defend consumers by filling out the form on ChooseWhoAz.com. The Arizona bill is one of the most blatant attacks on consumer freedom and competitive markets that we’ve seen to date. But it’s not the only one. Florida has legislation that would undermine the retail market for consumer solar rooftop projects by cutting financial incentives for installation and allowing investor-owned utilities to raise rates to recover lost revenue from competition. The bill was written by Florida Power & Light, and the utility industry has contributed $3.2 million to political campaigns this election cycle, including significant amounts to Democrats who have fallen in line to back the bill, according to the Tampa Bay Times. Two weeks remain in Florida’s 60-day legislative session. In California, the California Public Utilities Commission’s (CPUC) proposed changes to net metering is on hold thanks to the public uproar it caused – but it’s not dead. We’ll keep a close eye on the CPUC going forward and encourage everyone to do the same. The Solar Rights Alliance has been at the forefront of the fight for consumer solar rights in California. At the federal level, tonight President Joe Biden delivers his first State of the Union speech. He’s expected to try to revive clean energy proposals that stalled out as part of the Build Back Better package, including tax credits for clean energy investments. A major federal spending bill in the current environment of rising inflation and high energy prices is a tough sell. The lesson for policymakers is that price and supply are important components of a national energy policy to consumers. Rather than go big and most likely go into the midterms empty-handed, Congress should pursue policies that increase competition, innovation, and private investment in clean energy. Devin Hartman at the R Street Institute recently posted a list of recommendations for market-based reforms federal regulators and Congress should pursue that would boost clean energy deployment without requiring big federal spending. There’s a link to his report below. Enjoy. What we’re reading… Devin Hartman at the R Street Institute advocates for a two-pronged strategy to increase competition in electricity markets in Ten Congressional Electricity Reforms to Improve the Economy and Environment. Hartman recommends five steps the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) could take this year and five changes to the Federal Power Act that Congress should consider, including making retail choice the law of the land. Real Clear Energy published a commentary, Free Market Reforms Can Help Reduce GHG Emissions Faster, by Jakob Puckett, that makes the argument that market incentives and competition are more efficient investment drivers than government mandates. Follow us on Twitter and see up-to-date content on our website. Sincerely, |
