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June 2007 Along Those Lines
Reality check on Capitol Hill
Co-ops bring concerns of 40 million consumers to halls of Congress
 Armed with position papers and the concerns of the 40 million electric consumers they represent, more than 3,000 electric cooperative directors and other leaders worked the halls of Congress in early May to keep co-op positions front and center in the ongoing debate about America’s energy future.
While rate increases seem certain as Congress edges toward legislation to regulate carbon emissions, Glenn English, CEO of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, reminded participants at NRECA’s annual Legislative Conference their mission is to provide affordable, reliable electricity to co-op members.
“Forty million people are counting on you to bring a dose of reality to this whole question of how we get this job done,” he said in his keynote address at the conference, which ran May 6-9 in Washington, D.C.
“Millions of people across this country are making some very difficult choices between food, medicine and being able to keep their lights on, keep their air conditioning running or keep the heating going in wintertime,” English said. “Our job is to look after people like that.”
The attendance level — the highest in several years — included 83 directors, managers and staff members from Indiana’s 39 consumer-owned co-ops, their two generation and transmission cooperatives and their statewide association.
“We want to make sure members of Congress understand that what they do here affects everyone of our electric co-op members back in Indiana,” said Bruce Graham, CEO of Indiana Statewide Association of RECs. “Climate change legislation will impact the electric rates consumers pay. It’s our responsibility as consumer-owned co-ops to be involved as those decisions are made. These issues are important, and the directors who represent all their neighbors made sure lawmakers understood these challenges we face.”
Before heading to meetings with lawmakers, conference participants were briefed by co-op leaders and NRECA staffers on issues such as climate change, freight rail shipping rates, the future of federal power marketing administrations, renewable energy bonds and the mission of the Rural Utilities Service.
English said co-ops recognize a consensus is growing for legislation to control emissions of carbon dioxide as a way of combating global climate change in the coming decades.
In the next 10-15 years, however, co-ops must build additional generation to deal with a growing national appetite for electricity, he noted. That means co-op representatives need to keep communicating with lawmakers to accommodate long-term goals and short-term needs.
“We have got to come up with that extra power. We have got to make sure that these people who own those electric cooperatives out there have the opportunity to live, work, and prosper in rural America,” he said.
By emphasizing support of research and development in fields such as carbon capture and storage, Congress can make a difference in emissions without strangling the economy, English said. He cited a study by the Electric Power Research Institute that advocates a multi-tiered approach to carbon constraints as one road map to success.
Dena G. Stoner, NRECA vice president of government relations, said reconciling the need for generation with the desire for carbon dioxide reductions amounts to this generation’s “moon shot,” referring to the 1960s-era space program that brought together governments, scientists and industry in a massive research effort.
“The decisions we make today on baseload power will have an effect in 2030 and beyond,” she said.
Written By: eceditor
Date Posted: 5/31/2007
Number of Views: 443
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