Political Musings from Yarmouth to Augusta: 2009-02-08

It’s been more than 100 days since I was first elected to the Maine House of Representatives, and it’s safe to say that my husband and three young daughters now know more facts, figures, abbreviations and nicknames for state programs and departments than they probably want to. While the headlines on TV and in the newspaper may sound pretty challenging for our state – I’m honored to be serving you in Augusta and eager to do as much as I can for our area and state.

One of the most interesting parts of being in the Legislature is that there’s something different every day. I’m serving on the Natural Resources Committee, a passion of mine, and have considered legislation so far on everything from biomedical waste disposal to man-made wetland rules to municipal ownerships of dams.

New issues on all subjects and in all committees arise moment by moment. Even though it doesn’t sound like there is much bipartisan cooperation in Washington, I have seen many compromises in Augusta already and in these difficult times supported by a willingness to do what makes sense for Maine.

For instance, this week is my first public hearing on one of the bills I’ve submitted, and I’ll be using the time to “kill” my proposal. Sounds crazy, right? Let me explain. As a mom, I breastfed my three daughters when they were infants, and my experience, along with many others I’ve encountered through friends and support networks, taught me that this very healthy option has some significant barriers to its success. I submitted three bills on breaking down those walls.

One of them, the proposal I will be withdrawing, provided a jury duty exemption to lactating mothers. I studied the issue extensively before submitting the bill, and learned it was an option in other states. For anyone not familiar with a breastfeeding experience, a newborn and infant eat every two to three hours. You learn pretty quickly to balance the baby’s schedule and your family’s other needs. But waiting all day at court to be chosen for a jury, even with pumping a sufficient milk supply, throws a wrench into that balancing act.

Some time after I submitted the bill, I went on a tour of some of our courts, and spoke with judges and our state’s Supreme Court Justice, Leigh Saufley. As we discussed the issue, we found a compromise that would work much better, cost the taxpayers less because the bill wouldn’t go that far through the process, and accommodate lactating moms. Justices, said Judge Saufley, may just make a discretionary exemption, and she would make them aware of the need to do so.

Once it’s drafted, every piece of legislation has to have a public hearing, and I have asked the Judiciary Committee members to immediately vote it down. I’m still pursuing my other bills – one to provide better space in the workplace for lactating mothers to express breast milk and another about discrimination and lactating mothers, amongst other pieces of legislation on a wide variety of issue areas.

What’s most exciting about this situation is to find a solution to a problem without it costing more money. Efforts like these are what help the state, with so many budget constraints, manage its resources. We learned last week that state has saved $221 million under its spending cap, and that these restraints are starting to slow the growth of property taxes.

This, coupled with the news that Maine will be receiving assistance from the federal stimulus package, is good news. Not great, but I’ve learned quickly that governing is a work in progress – and that it doesn’t happen in a vacuum.

STATEHOUSE
REPORT on energy, upgrades, wind potential

POWER DEVELOPMENT IMPORTANT AND COMPLEX

The Maine Legislative Utilities and Energy Committee is working, without a large amount of public attention, on an issue that one article calls “the invisible elephant” of this legislative session. Committee Chair Sen. Barry Hobbins, D-Saco, said, “this is one of the most important issues facing the state at this time.” Since the issue affects virtually every home and business and the energy future of the state for decades to come – Senator Hobbins is probably correct.

Power Puzzle
While both the Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC) and the Legislature must strive to understand the issues involved and to act in a way that will benefit both taxpayers and rate payers, the complex and interlocking nature of the issue which impacts environment, electric rates, renewable energy such as wind and solar, business/industrial development and the long range future of Maine does pose what the Bangor Daily News calls a “Power Puzzle.”

A Bangor Daily News editorial points out that:

Maine is part of ISO New England, a consortium of users in the six states that buys electricity from producers and the companies that distribute the power over networks of wires, such as Central Maine Power and Bangor Hydro-Electric Co.The largest part of an electric bill for Maine residents and businesses is the cost of producing the electricity, whether by a coal-fired, oil-fired or nuclear plant, hydropower dam or wind turbine. A much smaller part of that electric bill pays CMP, Bangor Hydro and the others within the ISO to maintain those wire networks, and expand them as needed. But if Maine users are assessed a disproportionately high percentage of the cost of building new lines to connect southern New England, where demand is high, with the new electricity being generated in northern Maine, we have shortchanged ourselves.

Three Options
In late 2007, the PUC identified three options for Maine in this new energy era: Leave ISO New England and join with New Brunswick; leave ISO and go it alone; or stay with ISO but negotiate a better arrangement. The third option is the least radical, and as such, is the one most likely to be pursued. The PUC directed Central Maine Power and Bangor Hydro-Electric Co. to pursue a better deal with ISO New England.

The current agreements among CMP and Bangor Hydro and ISO New England expire Feb. 1, 2010. With that deadline in sight, the curtain soon will rise on the final act.

The Village Soup on Feb. 5 reported that:

The discontent, though, has reached such a level that some — including one of the three members of the MPUC — say Maine should explore withdrawal from ISO-New England either totally or in part.

In addition to keeping down homeowners’ bills, the decision has the potential to affect the state’s pursuit of a more reliable grid and renewable energy sources, both of which require transmission system upgrades that cost hundreds of millions of dollars.

Under the current agreement, those costs would be shared by all the New England states. Conversely, Maine pays 8 percent of the cost of other states’ projects. The MPUC holds the authority over the agreement and the negotiations. The Legislature’s role might be to pass a resolve for or against withdrawal, to institute legislation that might help the situation, to order studies, or possibly to stay out of it, said Hobbins. The MPUC expects a report on the negotiations by May 1 and has until Aug. 1 to indicate whether it intends to pull out or continue in the New England grid.

The issue is further complicated by the pending decision about a CMP proposal to expand and extend Maine’ power distribution lines.

A Bangor daily News editorial outlines it this way:

In a report, North American Electric Reliability Corp., which develops and enforces electricity system standards, said that, without upgrades, transmission systems in New England and the rest of the country can’t accommodate power from wind and other renewable sources. In effect, efforts to address climate change and energy independence, which call for producing more power from renewable sources such as wind, are on a collision course with the reliability of the country’s electricity grid.

The Maine Public Utilities Commission was considering two proposals that would improve the reliability of Maine’s electric system but now is considering just one. Central Maine Power Co. still proposes to build a new high-voltage transmission line from Orrington to Newington, N.H., to upgrade the backbone of Maine’s power system. The $1.4 billion project would enhance reliability of the 30-year-old system while increasing capacity, which would allow more power to be exported and imported.

The other line, which was proposed by CMP and Maine Public Service Co., would have connected northern Aroostook County with the New England power grid at a cost of $500 million. The County is currently connected only to Canada. This was cancelled February 5, 2009 by the PUC as a study showed it would create technical problems with the other distribution lines.

In considering these projects, the PUC’s top concern must be whether the improvements will benefit Maine ratepayers. A large part of that determination rests with how the new lines are paid for. Another layer of complication: The Maine PUC must decide whether Maine will stay in ISO-New England or begin the process of leaving. As regulators and lawmakers work through these complex problems, ensuring that Maine ratepayers benefit from the outcome must be their top priority.

Early in January the Portland Press Herald reported that:

The commission ordered Maine's two largest utilities to try to negotiate a better deal with the operator of the regional electricity transmission system, ISO-New England, before renewing a long-term agreement to stay in the grid.

High Rates
New England has the highest electric rates in the continental United States – nearly 16 cents per kilowatt hour, compared with the national average of 10 cents. Maine's average rate is nearly 14 cents, according to federal energy figures. Maine officials have become increasingly frustrated with the way ISO-NE controls and allocates those costs. The PUC determined, for instance, that construction cost overruns have exceeded $4 billion in the region since 2004. The PUC told the companies to negotiate a new deal that provides more consumer input, splits transmission investments more fairly and controls cost overruns. It wants a progress report early this summer.

To put some muscle behind the request, the PUC warned it would consider telling the utilities not to renew their grid agreement, if negotiations fail.

In reporting on PUC hearings on the proposed power line extention last fall the Waterville Sentinel noted that:

Grid Upgrade 1971
Maine's electrical grid last received an upgrade in 1971. Since then, according to a Central Maine Power analysis, the state's power use has doubled and the state's population has grown 32 percent. Much of the population has shifted to the southern and coastal parts of the state.

Other Complications
To complicate the situation even further some industries are working to have Maine withdraw completely from agreements with ISO-New England and one developer has stopped plans for a $50 million biomass boiler in Millinocket because access to the existing power grid has “maxed out.” Power line expansion may get funding as part of the now pending national stimulus package.

The Lewiston SunJournal put it this way:

Maine is joining other New England states to compete for funding proposed in a federal stimulus bill that could upgrade electrical transmission capacity, a prerequisite to significant renewable energy development.

Line capacity is viewed as a barrier to renewable energy development because larger projects like wind farms often generate more power than local grids can handle. This is of particular concern in northern New England states like Maine, which leads New England in installed wind power capacity, but has wind projects located in areas far from major transmission lines. CMP's proposed $1.4 billion Maine Power Reliability Program is an example of the types of projects that could be funded by the federal stimulus proposal.

However, in an energy report, the Portland Press Herald noted:

At least one “player” on the energy stage feels an extension/upgrade of the power grid is not necessary or desirable.

Acres of solar-electric panels installed near communities that use lots of power in the summer could be an alternative to a controversial and costly upgrade of the transmission system in southern and central Maine, a Portland-based energy company is asserting.

Details of the GridSolar proposal are contained in new filings at the Maine Public Utilities Commission. They will become part of a complex case before regulators, who are considering a $1.4 billion transmission upgrade project called the Maine Power Reliability Program. Residents who live along the transmission corridors, along with other opponents, have intervened in the case. They question whether all the expansion CMP has proposed is really needed.

CMP's plan follows the time-tested approach of designing a transmission system to handle electricity from remote power plants. GridSolar, by contrast, would use small-scale generators close to where the electric load is, a technique called distributed generation.

They note that peak electricity demand in Maine has shifted away from manufacturing to the service and health care sectors, and is strongest during business hours on humid summer days. Using CMP's data, GridSolar calculated that reliability is threatened on fewer than 10 percent of all hours during the year. Those hours coincided with times when sunshine is greatest, making solar a good match.

"CMP wants to spend $1.4 billion to meet load demands on 850 hours a year," Silkman said. "That didn't make sense to us."

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FOR THOSE WHO WANT MORE INFORMATION AND
THE SOURCES OF THE ABOVE QUOTATIONS:

Power grid bottleneck stalls biomass project

http://www.sunjournal.com/story/271231-3/MaineNews/Power_grid_bottleneck_stalls_biomass_project/>

New England power grid -- should Maine stay or go?

http://waldo.villagesoup.com/Government/story.cfm?storyID=144734>

Federal funds sought to boost electrical lines

http://www.sunjournal.com/story/302074-3/Business/Federal_funds_sought_to_boost_electrical_lines/

Maine utility says solar a viable option for peak use

Pasted from <http://www.energycurrent.com/index.php?id=3&storyid=15717>

Electric Grid Unlocked

Pasted from <http://www.bangornews.com/detail/98153.html>

Exit power grid to reduce rates? Wait, PUC says

Pasted from <http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/story_pf.php?id=232582&ac=PHbiz>

CMP to upgrade transmission lines