Foncello, CT House and Senate Republicans Offer Ideas to Provide Consumers Relief on Electric Bills
Hartford, CT. — As Connecticut residents are opening up their January electricity bills, Connecticut Republicans today unveiled a detailed six-point plan to bring about stability and relief for consumers.
Rep. Martin Foncello weighed in on one point of the plan, to study ways to increase the supply of natural gas.
“There is a proposal to expand a natural gas compressor station in Brookfield, but one of the main objections is that Connecticut can’t even tap into that supply. The company wants to expand natural gas supply for New York, and there are hazards associated with that, but Connecticut residents won’t see any benefit from the project,” Rep. Martin Foncello (R-Brookfield) said. “There’s an opportunity to leverage regional resources, but Connecticut shouldn’t be the passthrough for energy policies around us with no benefit.”
“People are hurting. Republicans are once again offering specific ideas to put consumers first and provide much-needed relief to Connecticut families,” Sen. Republican Leader Stephen Harding said. “Small businesses are clamoring for relief. We must act, and we have a detailed plan to help consumers.”
“It’s time for majority party Democrats who control the energy agenda to acknowledge what utility ratepayers and analysts have made clear: their entire approach to energy policy, rooted in flawed priorities and misguided philosophy, has failed everyone,” House Republican Leader Vincent Candelora said. “This session is an opportunity to shift toward affordability, and unfortunately their recent news conference made it clear they’re out of ideas. We urge Democrats to adopt our proposals as the foundation for the action residents want and deserve.”
The Republicans’ plan would:
1) remove Public Benefits Charges from electric bills
2) prohibit agreements that buy electricity at 150 % above the wholesale price
3) redefine “Class I renewable energy source” to include any electricity generated from a hydropower or nuclear power generating facility
4) separate PURA from DEEP
5) eliminate any incentive program that increases electric demand, including, any electric vehicle rebate program
6) study ways to increase the supply of natural gas
The General Assembly session adjourns on June 4th.
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