Yet Another State Threatens to Penalize Solar Power Users

[xchrom]

http://www.alternet.org/yet-another-state-threatens-penalize-solar-power-users



Despite poll after poll showing that Americans want more clean energy, Indiana legislators are pushing bills that would reduce energy efficiency and make it harder for Hoosier state residents to go solar, just as the solar industry is getting on its feet in the state.

Last week, Indiana’s Senate Utilities Committee heard from a packed room about its bill that would let utilities set energy efficiency goals. Last year the state decided to end the popular Energizing Indiana efficiency program. Now some in the legislature have created Senate Bill 412, which is very one-sided in favor of utilities who sell electricity and doesn’t protect the average person from monopoly interests.

Energy efficiency is a proven tool to lower electricity bills and save money for people across the state. Handing control of these programs over to companies that are in the business of selling more electricityjeopardizes Indiana’s progress on energy efficiency.

And many Indiana residents spoke their mind and delivered that message during the hearing.

[RiverLover]

1. Just like Ohio.

Purchased by fossil fuel interests & complicit in the the 5th mass extinction headed this way.

[Scuba]

12. Just like Wisconsin.

[daleanime]

13. It's already here....

[newfie11]

2. Amazing what greed can do

Destroy the planet but be a millionaire

[n2doc]

3. They should just cut to the chase and tax people for breathing and send the proceeds to Koch

And people keep voting these clowns in, so nothing changes.

[B Calm]

4. I live behind the Hoosier Iron Curtain and let me tell you, the republicans in this state

are bunch of crooks!

[Trillo]

5. That state, Indiana, must be run by Neanderthals.

The only people who wouldn't be interested in clean energy would be folks on big oil's take, and-or people too stupid to know any better.

[TransitJohn]

14. You can't blame this on 'big oil'

That's coal. 'Big oil' is used for transportation, not power.

[Trillo]

20. Since when is oligarchy distinguished by significant difference?

Big Oil. Fossil Fuel Lobby. Big Industry.

You are correct that 98% of the electricity production is via coal. I don't mean to pick a fight with you personally. I just don't see any significant difference of one from the other. A few rich folks and-or corporations all conspiring with each other to fuck the rest of us for our entire lifetimes. That's oligarchy.

Indiana loves them oligarchs.

[TransitJohn]

21. Words have meanings, it's not my fault. eom

n/t

[Trillo]

22. Who said you were at fault?

[TransitJohn]

23. No.

Sorry you used oil erroneously as a synonym for oligarchy.

[Trillo]

24. I didn't use "oil erroneously as a synonym for oligarchy"

I may have used the phrase "Big Oil" erroneously. If so, thank you for the correction.

Here's why I didn't use "oil erroneously as a synonym for oligarchy"

The Oligarchy Versus Planet Earth
...
Making the switch to green energy would be enormously difficult EVEN if people were well informed and democracy were functional. But they are not and it is not. The reason is “oligarchy”. Think “Citizens United.” Oligarchy is governance by and for the “BIGs”—BIG-OIL, BIG-DEFENCE, BIG-PHARMA, BIG-BANKS, BIG-HEALTH-CARE, and my old hobby-horse, BIG-ZION.

My “take” is that our government and the mainstream media are “occupied territory”, roughly, “wholly-owned subsidiaries” of the BIGs, the oligarchs, the several big-money interests, who/which allow popular democracy to take effect only on matters of no interest to themselves (or as to matters, if any, on which the oligarchs are, among themselves, in opposing balance).

The BIGs include individuals such as the Koch brothers, but consist mostly of big corporations and big banks, big hedge funds, big pension funds, and the like. They run America and much of the world. “The People”, as such, do not. Not on the important stuff.

more...

[TransitJohn]

30. Blue flamingo strawberry

Galloping spelunkers aflame.

[The Wizard]

6. Indiana is solidly Repubic

They forge the chains for their own enslavement. Bigotry and ignorance are powerful tools Repubics abuse to stay in power.

[Enthusiast]

7. Kicked and recommended a whole bunch!

[mrdmk]

8. Of course there is big money in the processing of fossil fuels

Just not enough for some of these greedy ass-hats...

A very sad state of affairs ;-0

[Hoppy]

9. A.L.E.C. ?

[rurallib]

10. I know ALEC has some model bills that do this very thing

they were probably used as a template if nothing else.

[BlueEye]

11. Pretty awful step backwards from the state that has one of the largest Wind farms in the US

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fowler_Ridge_Wind_Farm

[Fred Sanders]

15. Republicans are trapped between science and superstition to guide public policy.

Look what happens to public policy when it is superstition that takes over....disaster and greed and corruption.

[Botany]

16. vote republican and this is what you get

[LynneSin]

17. Sorry wrong people to blame. Skip voting and this is what you get

Republicans show up for every election.

Democrats think there isn't any difference between the Republican and the democrat on the ballot or it isn't that exciting of an election because it's not presidential and they stay at home.

So if you want to blame anyone blame the democrats who skipped voting.

[Botany]

19. You're right but the lower turn out of the Ds was the goal of the Koch/Media/Republican structure

And I think that the 2014 was also very dirty on many levels.

But I will never get why anybody would vote republican because they want to kill of the
Post Office, Public Schools, Women's Reproductive Rights, and lots of other nasty stuff.
The republicans' "product" is inferior but somehow it is sold as an equal choice to the
American people.

[Jackpine Radical]

26. Well, you can be pissed forever at the apathetic intermittent voters,

and maybe you're right about assigning the blame. But that doesn't change anything. Those apathetic marginal voters do come out for Presidential elections, & I think they would for midterms too, if the Dems were better at giving them good reasons to come out. We can either blame them lose forever, or figure out how to get their attention.

[Android3.14]

18. Another Alternet fail

They should label this clearly as an editorial.
They could have used a homegrown photo of someone working with solar rather than a stock bit.
Fricken' Alternet, rewriting other people's work, republishing opinion as news, and lowering journalistic standards as badly as Fox News.

[RiverLover]

27. The story on alternet is true. Your post is a RW fail.

http://www.ibj.com/articles/51447-utilities-favor-legislation-changing-economics-of-rooftop-panels

http://www.tristatehomepage.com/story/d/story/indiana-proposed-bill-could-mean-change-for-solar/28995/OC1BvgmCzkeCcS38i6bTfQ

http://www.indystar.com/story/news/2015/01/25/need-pay-attention-solar-energy-legislation/22321271/

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2015/01/27/3615496/indiana-bill-could-quash-solar/

[Android3.14]

28. I never said it was untrue. I said Alternet is lazy

Take your RW fail, stuff it in a pipe and smoke it.

[Liberal_in_LA]

25. they are in the pockets of big interests

[mountain grammy]

29. We've been hearing rumblings about this in Colorado

and with the State Senate with a one vote Republican majority and oil and gas interests throwing money around, it could happen.