Washington, D.C. - Energy Subcommittee Republican Leader Fred Upton (R-MI) delivered opening remarks at Tuesday’s Energy Subcommittee hearing on modernizing America’s electric grid.
Excerpts and highlights from his prepared remarks:
NEEDING A BIPARTISAN APPROACH
“I look forward to today’s hearing to examine the challenges and opportunities to modernize our electric grid. However, I am concerned that the Majority’s go it alone approach will prevent Congress from fixing some of the most obvious needs.
“Instead of the Majority’s Green New Deal wish-list, we should be starting with proven bipartisan issues.
“The Committee should be focused on strengthening the reliability of the electric grid to prevent blackouts; lowering the cost of utility bills for our constituents; and preventing a repeat cyber-attack, such as the one that took down the Colonial pipeline.
“Instead, the Majority is pushing a 1,000 page bill with more than half a trillion dollars in spending - the ‘CLEAN Future Act’ which would ban hydraulic fracturing, ban plastics, and ban new pipelines. It would put a chilling effect on new infrastructure development and attempt to nationalize our electric grid.
“The CLEAN Future Act would impose harsh new Federal mandates for electricity generation and to socialize the costs - forcing everyone’s electric bills to go up, regardless of income level.
“Among the most troublesome electricity provisions, the CLEAN Future Act would take away States’ rights by forcing utilities to place transmission facilities under the control of a Regional Transmission Organization (RTO) or Independent System Operator (ISO)."
A GIVEAWAY TO THE RICH
“Another provision - the so-called ‘Right to Clean Energy’ - is a huge giveaway to big companies and the rich so they can install new solar panels and build wind farms at everyone else’s expense.
“The problem with these provisions is that by allowing some to cut the line, it leaves average residential customers on the hook to maintain existing equipment and aging power plants.
“The ‘Right to Clean Energy’ is an unfair regressive tax on residential customers.
“Mr. Chairman, I know that we share the goal to improve the reliability of the electric grid and lower utility bills for our constituents. There is a lot that we can get accomplished in a bipartisan way."
