Senators threaten to raise energy costs during lame duck session

During a hearing held in New Mexico, Steve Michel, chief counsel for Western Resource Advocates’ (WRA) Energy Program, stated the belief that there must be a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) because otherwise no one would voluntarily use renewable energy resources. Why? Because they are expensive and untested. An interesting opinion coming from a man whose organization’s main goals are to “advance clean energy to reduce pollution and global climate change” and “promote sustainable energy technologies—such as solar and wind power.”

An avowed supporter and proponent of “renewables” admitting there needs to be regulations to force renewable use because they are “more expensive” should be alarming to all energy users and to all Americans.

At a time when the American economy is suffering, intentional cost increases are unnecessary. Yet this is exactly what Democratic New Mexico Sen. Jeff Bingaman, chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, is proposing with his newly introduced Renewable Electricity Promotion Act of 2010, which will make a 15 percent Renewable Electricity Standard (RES) the federal law.

The RES, or RPS, is a standard that is currently set on a state-by-state basis. It requires that a certain percentage of electricity be generated by renewable sources — namely wind and solar — by a specified date. For example, California set a goal of having 20 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2010 and they are pushing for 33 percent by 2020 — most other states have goals that match the year: 10% by 2010, 15% by 2015 and 20% by 2020.

Thirty states currently have mandatory renewable regulations. According to an Emerging Energy Research market study, few states are on track to meet their goals. California’s Proposition 23, being voted on this fall — and supported by Senate candidate Carly Fiorina as being necessary to protect the state’s economy — requires the state to abandon increased renewable energy requirements until California’s unemployment drops to 5.5 percent or less for four consecutive quarters. Current unemployment is around 12 percent. Polls show Proposition 23 is likely to pass.

While few states are able to meet their own goals and while California is voting on repealing theirs, Sen. Bingaman is forging ahead with a national regulation that, according to Reuters, he plans to make a “reality during the lame-duck session after the mid-term election.” Some level of RES or RPS has been included in many previous bills that have failed to pass so the attempt to slip it through in a lame-duck session is indicative of the fact that they know it would not pass if senators had to face voters after voting on it.

Why Sen. Bingaman should know better