So this sucks:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...
The Ohio House of Representatives approved a bill on Wednesday that would roll back the state's renewable energy and energy efficiency law, making Ohio the first state to reverse standards meant to reduce reliance on fossil fuels.
The bill passed out of a House committee on Tuesday and went to the floor Wednesday afternoon. The bill had already passed the Senate earlier this month.
The Ohio legislature approved the renewable energy and efficiency standards in 2008, when it passed them almost unanimously. But opponents of the measure have been trying to roll them back for several years. Last year, state Sen. Bill Seitz, a Republican from Cincinnati, said the standards are like "Joseph Stalin's five-year plan." (Seitz is a co-sponsor of this year's bill.)
The new measure would pause required increases in renewables and efficiency for two years, and would also weaken the standards when they come back into effect in 2017. The original plan called for a 5.5 percent increase in renewables by 2017, while the revised measure lowers that to a 3.5 percent increase.
Rep. Robert Hagan, a Democrat from Youngstown who voted against the bill, said in a statement that its supporters are "clinging to outdated modes of energy generation."
"As the rest of the country is moving forward on energy efficiency and independence, Ohio is moving backward,” Hagan said. “Reversing our Renewable Portfolio Standards is completely irrational, and unfortunately Ohio consumers and businesses are the victims of the absurdity."
The bill has been hotly contested in the state. Environmental and consumer advocates opposed the rollback, but so did some conservative-leaning business groups. An editorial in the Cleveland Plain Dealer quoted the Ohio Manufacturers' Association as saying the measure "will drive up electricity costs for customers and undermine manufacturing competitiveness in Ohio." The automaker Honda, which is one of the largest employers in the state, also opposes the rollback. Environmental and energy efficiency groups oppose the measure, too, and are pushing for Republican Gov. John Kasich to veto it. - Huffington Post, 5/28/14
But don't expect Governor John Kasich (R. OH) to veto this:
http://www.cleveland.com/...
Gov. John Kasich intends to sign a two-year freeze of Ohio's renewable energy and energy efficiency mandates, an administration spokesman said Wednesday.
The freeze, which passed final legislative votes on Wednesday afternoon, will give lawmakers time to study the mandates, which critics said are unachievable, raise Ohioans’ electric bills, and intrude on the free market.
Kasich spokesman Rob Nichols, in a statement, said Senate Bill 310 is a "balanced" way to support renewable energy while helping Ohio's economic recovery.
"Ohio needs more renewable and alternative energy sources and it needs a strong system to support them as they get started," Nichols said. "It's naïve, however, to think that government could create that system perfectly the first time and never have to check back to see if everything's OK." - Northeast Oho Media Group, 5/28/14
Here's a little more info:
http://thinkprogress.org/...
Former Ohio Governor Ted Strickland, currently President of the Center for American Progress Action Fund, signed the original RES into law, and has a different take.
“Let me be clear, this vote does not represent a compromise, it represents a giveaway to utility companies and the end of Ohio’s leadership in the renewable energy industries.”
“When I signed SB 221 into law it put consumers on a level playing field with the utility companies,” Strickland said. “It was legislation developed over months of bipartisan discussions about how to create jobs in an emerging industry and position Ohio as a national leader in the production of renewable energy. It has been working — jobs are being created, investments are being made, and rate-payers are saving money.”
Since the standard came into effect, Ohio’s clean energy sector provided 25,000 jobs and at least $1 billion in private sector investment. This has saved ratepayers roughly $230 million, dropping electricity rates by almost a percent and a half.
So who is driving the opposition to the standards? Akron-based, coal-dominated utility FirstEnergy has been leading the charge, with a group of utilities spending $694,000 to donate to state legislators. According to CAP Action analysis, the six co-sponsors of SB 310 have received $141,200 in total political contributions from FirstEnergy. FirstEnergy’s CEO said that his company is “being hurt by various mandates that drive down electricity demand.” The company has even asked its customers to push for the bill freezing the clean energy and efficiency standards.
Yet FirstEnergy admitted to state regulators that the law’s efficiency standards helped consumers save $2 for every $1 spent. In total, the energy efficiency program has saved Ohio $1 billion in formerly wasted energy.
As former Governor Strickland put it: “With this vote Ohioans can say goodbye to jobs and hello to higher electric bills.” - Think Progress, 5/28/14
So while this does suck it also creates a new opportunity for Ed FtizGerald (D. OH) to make his case against Kasich:
http://www.examiner.com/...
Gov. Kasich's Democratic challenger this year, Ed FitzGerald, released a statement on the announcement from Gov. Kasich office that he intends to sign SB 310 into law. By doing so, FitzGerald said, Kasich will become the first state chief executive in the nation to freeze renewable energy and efficiency standards.
"Tonight, Governor Kasich's office announced that he intends to move Ohio's economy, families, and environment backwards. SB 310 will force utility prices to rise, and cost Ohioans thousands of jobs," Cuyahoga County Executive FitzGerald said. "In signing this bill, Governor Kasich will align himself with the Koch Brothers and the wealthy and well connected, and against working Ohioans. As Governor, I will work to make Ohio a national energy leader, rather than make headlines for trapping Ohio in the Rust Belt."
The statement included a comment on the Koch brothers-backed Americans for Prosperity, which threw its support behind the bill that makes Ohio the first state in the nation to "significantly ease its renewable-energy standards." The Ohio Manufacturers' Association as well as several other conservative-leaning business groups opposed the bill, the FitzGerald camp said. "Thanks to the freeze, an American Electric Power project that would have created 4,000 new jobs in Ohio before 2019 is also put on hold," FitzGerald, who trailed Kasich in the last Quinnipiac University Ohio Poll by 15 points, said.
The creates the Energy Mandates Study Committee, which will consist of 13 members: six members from the House of Representatives, six members of the Senate, and the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio chairperson, as an ex officio, nonvoting member.
A statement from the Ohio House noted that the House Public Utilities Committee has worked for several months on energy issues in an attempt to develop the right strategy towards addressing energy and energy efficiency standards. Supporters of the bill include a wide variety of individual business owners, consumers, and large employers in the state.
A common theme heard by the committee, according to the GOP-led House, was the unfair and increasing cost of compliance imposed on electric utility rate payers. The bill "balances the goals of keeping down the cost of electricity consumption while assessing the changing landscape of energy policy issues." The House tabled an amendment that would have deleted the required disclosure of costs of the mandates, and severely curtailed the time for the study committee and legislature to fully consider the issues and enact any possible future recommendations. The Senate later in the day concurred in amendments made in the House, and the bill now heads to Gov. Kasich’s desk. - Examiner, 5/29/14
In fact, FitzGerald wasted no time using this as a campaign issue. Here's the e-mail I received from his campaign today:
Governor Kasich confirmed he will sign a Koch Brothers' bill that endangers 25,000 Ohio jobs.
Kasich and his fellow statehouse Republicans will freeze Ohio's alternative energy goals -- putting our entire state's new energy economy at risk. It will also make Ohio the first state in the country to roll back its alternative-energy goals.
Kasich has ignored repeated pleas not only from clean energy groups but also the Catholic Bishops of Ohio and Ohio Manufacturers' Association to veto the bill. Instead, he's choosing to side with the Koch Brothers. It's time for new leadership in Ohio and a governor who will support new energy jobs, not threaten them.
Chip in $3.00 to elect Ed, the new energy candidate for governor.
https://secure.edfitzgerald.org/...
Ohio law has said our state would be powered by 25 percent alternative energy by 2025. Already this goal has saved more than $1 billion on consumer electricity bills -- that means money in your pocket.
Not to mention, AEP had an alternative energy plan that would have created 4,000 jobs over the next 4 years. That's 4,000 jobs John Kasich is about to kill because the Koch Brothers told him to.
Ohio should be continuing our progress towards new energy, not giving up. We need a governor who agrees.
Will you donate to support Ed and Ohio's new energy jobs and economy?
https://secure.edfitzgerald.org/...
Thanks for your support,
Malinda
Digital Director
Friends of FitzGerald-Neuhardt
Click here to donate to FitzGerald's campaign:
https://secure.edfitzgerald.org/...