http://ens-news.com/ens/may2003/2003-05-15-09.asp
California Governor Orders $1 Billion Cut in Electric Bills SACRAMENTO, California, May 15, 2003 (ENS) - California Governor Gray Davis has directed state regulators to cut $1 billion in electricity rates. Power prices skyrocketed in 2001 when a shortfall in the power supply to California residents triggered a series of rolling blackouts. California energy users paid premium prices for electricity during that period. "The critics said the answer to the energy crisis was to pass along 400 percent increases in rates. But my plan from the get-go was to keep rates down, not let them go up," Davis said announcing the order on Tuesday. "We are putting money back in the hands of ratepayers instead of into the coffers of energy companies. Our energy plan is working." The governor ordered California's power buying agency, the Department of Water Resources (DWR), to seek Public Utilities Commission approval for the rate cut. The DWR began buying power in January 2001. It turned over energy procurement to the state's investor-owned utilities early this year. The DWR had estimated in 2002 that they would spend $5.5 billion during the 2003 calendar year. By returning the utilities to buying power on January 1, the agency was able to reduce its estimate by $1 billion. Governor Davis wrote to Public Utilities Commission Chairman Michael Peevey Tuesday, requesting that he speed the agency's approval for the rate cut. The Commission could act on the governor's request within two months. Ratepayers, both residential and commercial, would see their bills decline as early as this fall. Precise savings are unknown until the Public Utilities Commission designs a plan to implement the rate cut. To gain further relief for Californians, Governor Davis Tuesday urged the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to further consider California's request to abrogate or reform the long term power contracts the state entered during the height of the energy crisis. "Contracts entered into with a gun at your head are not sacrosanct. Fixing California's long term contracts is an integral part of restoring trust in the energy market. As long as the FERC allows these contracts to stand, the public interest has not been met. They're rewarding bad behavior by looking the other way. We're calling on the FERC to take the next logical step - making good on wrong. Until these long term contracts are fixed, justice hasn't been done." FERC met today, but has not issued a decision on the California long term power contracts. Since Davis took office in 1999, the California Energy Commission has licensed 36 power plants totaling 13,685 megawatts. Of the 36 plants, 19 are now on-line producing 5,722 megawatts of electricity. In addition, 14 projects, representing 8,629 megawatts are currently in the Energy Commission licensing process. California also is saving up to 3,000 MW, under the Davis Administration's energy conservation plan. The governor also has signed legislation to ensure that California receives 20 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2017. ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Get A Free Psychic Reading! Your Online Answer To Life's Important Questions. http://us.click.yahoo.com/Lj3uPC/Me7FAA/uetFAA/9bTolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Biofuels at Journey to Forever http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Biofuel at WebConX http://webconx.green-trust.org/2000/biofuel/biofuel.htm List messages are archived at the Info-Archive at NNYTech: http://archive.nnytech.net/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
