Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger could get a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) bill on his desk after the state’s legislative session ends this week. SB 14 by Sen. Joe Simitian would deny California utilities access to the most cost-effective energy and, according to the Public Utilities Commission, raise the state’s industrial electricity costs at least 7 percent. The Energy Information Administration states that existing rates are already 45 percent more expensive than the nation and 80 percent higher than the western region.
California industry can barely compete with its neighboring states and energy costs play a major role in that imbalance. The AB 32 greenhouse gas law that passed in 2006 already allows the California Air Resources Board to implement RPS in a cost-effective manner. Gov. Schwarzenegger should veto this bill because it will impose huge new costs and threaten high wage manufacturing jobs in California.
Read Letter to Gov. Schwarzenegger