Group backs energy blueprint for long-term needs

Delmarva Now!
By Sharahn D. Boykin
March 8, 2010

SALISBURY -- A grassroots organization is backing proposed legislation that would require the state to develop a comprehensive plan for meeting long-term energy needs and take environmental factors into consideration.

About 20 residents attended the town hall meeting held at the Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore Sunday afternoon where Alana Wase, a conservation coordinator for the Maryland Sierra Club, discussed the state's need for an energy needs "blueprint."

The proposed legislation would require the Maryland Public Service Commission, the state agency responsible for regulating public utilities, to develop a report that analyzes options for meeting the state's long-term energy needs for the next 20 years. If passed into law, the initial report would be submitted to the governor and general assembly by December 1, and subsequent reports would follow every two years.

"It would give the state the opportunity to determine what energy options provide the cleanest, cheapest and most reliable options," Wase said during an interview.

The report would give an estimate of the state's energy needs and rank the options for meeting the needs based on reliability and state environmental laws.

Currently, the PSC is required to submit a 10-year plan to the Natural Resources secretary each year, according to the fiscal note for the proposed bill. The plan is made up of a combination of long-term plans submitted by electric utility companies around the state.

"We've passed some important legislation, but there's a disconnect between legislation passed and our energy policies," Wase said.

Previously, state lawmakers have passed bills that require the state to reduce its electricity use by 15 percent and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent, according to Wase. Yet the PSC doesn't necessarily take the laws into consideration when making energy decisions, Wase said.

Some utility companies voiced opposition to the bill during a hearing in Annapolis, stating there was nothing wrong with how the system works now, said Jen Brock-Cancellieri, deputy director of the Maryland League of Conservation Voters.

"You wouldn't build a house without a blueprint but that's what we're doing right now," Brock-Cancellieri said.

Delegate Jim Mathias, D-38B-Worcester, spoke briefly before the presentation Sunday but did not voice support or opposition for the bill. He briefly spoke about the state's budget cuts and how families are struggling to survive during harsh economic times.

"We're going through a different time," said Mathias. "We have to make sure people's bills remain affordable."