A media advisory from the Save Our Rivers Society:

SAVE OUR RIVERS SOCIETY

MEDIA ADVISORY
September 15, 2009

GREEN ENERGY LEGISLATION AND STANDARDS

The United States General Accountability Office Issued a report in September 2008:

Decades of ‘ELECTRICITY RESTRUCTURING’ resulted in higher costs to consumers and had failed to deliver any of the benefits promised as changes were made to utilities and their once wholly owned transmission systems.

The GAO recommended that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) be restored to its former exclusive capacity as the only regulator of electricity and gas transmission systems. Households were well served by the publicly accountable regulatory agency before electricity restructuring ushered in private regulators and market manipulators.

Electricity and gas consumers cannot afford another ENRON. The GAO report directs law makers to look into new contracts between the regional transmissions operators, along with the newly added Canadian Independent Transmission Operators and a newly formed private regulator NERC who has recently changed its name again to end in the word Corporation. The Western Governors Organization and California itself is moving quickly without apparent awareness of the GAO report. Hurried legislation could trap consumers and suppliers in undesirable circumstances. The new California Utility PG&E is lobbying the California legislature for fast action regarding alternative energy standards that could result in unnecessarily bad consequences for consumers and for the natural watershed environments and the people of British Columbia.

United States lawmakers have the power to protect all electricity consumers from another ENRON style market manipulation. Given the importance of economic stability and energy security we ask each and every informed citizen and lawmaker to slowdown and eradicate the North American grid of transmission systems of private regulatory influence.

Transmission operators (RTO and ITO) have agreed in contracts to reliability standards and to pass the costs of operating the new private regulator on to utility consumers. That point alone should alarm every household and every consumer of gas and electricity. Another ENRON experience is at hand if State and Federal lawmakers do not pause. In a recent agreement NERC enjoys some authority from FERC. The GOA report did note FERC personnel issues when gathering the evidence presented in the report.

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