Ok, so here’s (I hope) the last one for this session. There’s simply no good policy argument for the money grab the Lege pulled here. The ends (supporting OMSI) don’t justify the means used (grabbing money from PGE ratepayers’ — including those who live far away from Portland — out of the Energy Trust of Oregon).

Responsible leadership means practicing self-discipline. This money grab for OMSI is one of only a few mars on an otherwise strong Legislative session.

On a more pragmatic note, CUB’s argument that this grab is illegal is a good one–which means that, unless Gov. K uses his line-item veto, Oregon will waste many months and tens of thousands of dollars to litigate the legality, and probably lose to boot.

So help keep the 2007 above average — call or write the leadership and the Governor and tell him to put the money back into the Energy Trust.

Thank you. Phone numbers after the jump.

Call Legislative Leadership About OMSI Funding Mess

The firestorm continues regarding the Legislature’s redirection of ratepayer energy efficiency monies (called public purpose funds and managed by the Energy Trust of Oregon) to pay off OMSI’s 15-year-old rebuilding loan. The money swipe was part of an omnibus spending bill, SB 994, passed in late June without public input. Despite the fact that many large energy and environmental issues were decided during the 2007 Legislative Session, including the passage of a landmark Renewable Energy Standard, the OMSI issue has people unusually fired up. And now it’s time to fire up Oregon’s legislative leadership to clean up this mess (after all, they did create it).

Why are people reacting so strongly to this misuse of public purpose funds? Perhaps it is the understanding Oregonians have of how important energy efficiency and conservation are in protecting both our environment and ratepayers’ pocketbooks. Perhaps it is the precedent that would be set if Energy Trust funds are siphoned off, allowing everyone and their brother to try for a shot at the money next session. Perhaps it is the blatant unfairness of using the money of a small subset of Oregonians to pay off a state debt. This is so unfair most people can’t imagine that it could be legal, and CUB is inclined to agree.

Whatever the reason, no other recent energy issue has excited so much passion and so many phone calls and emails; thousands of emails have been sent to the Governor on this issue (from members of CUB, Northwest Energy Coalition, Onward Oregon, Interfaith Network for Earth Concerns, Oregon Apollo, and the Oregon Solar Energy Association, among other groups). And the media has been paying attention, as well. The Statesman Journal ran this strongly worded opinion piece on July 2nd. The Governor has expressed doubt in the media about the legality of the money grab, and has requested an opinion from the Attorney General. And of course, the Oregonian editorialized against the move weeks ago.

CUB is hoping that the Governor will use his line-item veto to stop the raid on the public purpose funds. We sent this letter outlining the legal and policy arguments for our veto request (thanks to those of you who also contacted him). Gov. Kulongoski has until August 9th to use his veto power in favor of protecting the public purpose funds. Legislative leadership still hasn’t recognized the enormity of the problem, and we need them to help the Governor craft a solution to this mess (including OMSI’s financial difficulty) that doesn’t harm ratepayers or the environment.

In order to help ensure that the veto happens, and the mess is adequately cleaned up, we need your help again. Please contact legislative leadership with the following messages:

• The raid on ratepayer money designated for new energy efficiency and renewable resources to pay off OMSI’s 15-year-old debt is unacceptable and probably unlawful;

• Legislative leaders should encourage the Governor to use his line-item veto to stop this misuse of public purpose funds;

• Legislative leadership should allocate General Fund money to help OMSI pay their debt, with the legislative Emergency Board providing some interim funding to OMSI quickly;

• Finally, ask them to pledge to take up the OMSI financial problem in the February 2008 Special Session of the Legislature, if it has not been resolved.

Please get those phone calls and emails rolling in to Senate President Peter Courtney at (503) 986-1600; and House Speaker Jeff Merkley at (503) 986-1200. If you have time, also contact the following leaders as well: Senate Majority Leader Richard Devlin at (503) 986-1700; and House Majority Leader Dave Hunt at (503) 986-1900.

No one argues with the importance of OMSI and its programs, or the need to get this valued Oregon institution on a more stable financial footing. But meeting that need is a state responsibility, not the responsibility of a few utility ratepayers. The Legislature goofed badly by choosing an action that is unfair, probably unlawful, and will likely raise rates in the short term and the long term. Had those legislators consulted CUB and others before trying to divert this money, we would have alerted them to the problems and tried to help them find another solution. We certainly would have helped them to understand that utility customers’ money is not theirs to spend at will.

There is still a big job ahead of us in the next few weeks. So please take just a few minutes out of the hot summer weather and heat up the phone and email lines. Let legislative leadership know they’re not out of hot water yet.

Thanks for reading CUB Online. Feel free to forward this message on to your lists.

Please visit our website: www.oregoncub.org .

And if you haven’t already called or written to the Gov on this, it’s still a good idea:

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 12th, 2007 at 6:51 pm and is filed under Energy Future, Environment, General, Tax Reform/Tax Fairness. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.