On Friday, June 26th the congress passed HR 2454, also known as "Waxman-Markey" by a very narrow margin of 219-212. This bill is one that will impact every electric consumer in America, affecting the cost of electricity in your home, for your farm operations, and for our local businesses and industries.
After all the effort in recent months to communicate with our Congressman and Senators about our need for affordable electricity, both here in SPD country and across the United States, you may find yourself wondering:
1. Were our efforts to communicate worth the effort? And:
2. Now what?
First of all, the answer to question #1 is YES! The efforts put forth by SPD customers and rural electric consumers through the Our Energy, Our Future campaign were heard loud and clear by our Nebraska representatives! Our Congressman Adrian Smith and Senators Mike Johanns and Ben Nelson have all shown signs of concern for the effects that Waxman-Markey will have for electric consumers.
Now, to address your question of "Now what?" It is imoprtant to remember that the vote by Congress was ONLY ONE STEP in the process. And now, there is more work to be done. The bill will now be considered by the US Senate. Through the Our Energy, Our Future campaign, you can remind Senators Johanns and Nelson that this bill is still a concern, and that affordable electricity is a must.
Now that the Senate is stepping up to the plate to debate and consider this bill, this is a critical time to voice your concern for energy legislation that will not compromise affordable electricity for all consumers. Keep the dialogue going! Our continued message needs to remind our Senators of the need for electricity that is both affordable and reliable.
You can easily engage in this conversation by logging on to www.southernpd.com/oeof. If you have already sent a message, feel free to send additional messages as the debate and discussions in the Senate approach.
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2 comments:
Nice summary SPD...we believe the senators from Nebraska fully comprehend how this legislation will impact rural America. Still, we need to be diligent about following the bill through the process. At the very last minute, 300 pages were added to HR 2454. Can that happen again? We think the answer is yes. That's why we will encourage our customers to be prepared to contact their senator.
Thank you to our friends at Dawson for the comments.
There are many more power districts and electric cooperatives across the country who are also providing information to their customers about climate change legislation and are providing the tools needed to easily communicate with elected representatives.
Its an amazing effort and if we all work together we can make a difference!
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