TEXAS CALL FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY

Consolidate efforts in energy efficiency
Jim Marston, August 28, 2010 (Houston Chronicle)

"It’s time our state government got serious about energy efficiency and consolidated its random energy efficiency efforts into one agency that will focus on nothing else…

"…[I]n Texas…[w]hen the mercury creeps toward triple digits, our electric bills soar…[and] the cheapest kilowatt of electricity is the one you don’t have to use…[N]o one is suggesting that Texans go without our air-conditioning…But [s]tudy after study shows that a dollar invested in energy efficiency pays off 2 or 3 to 1. And that’s money in Texans’ pockets…"

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"…[W]e’re talking about maintaining our lifestyles and saving money. We’re talking about better insulation, double-paned windows, better circulation, timer thermostats, energy-efficient appliances, innovations like rooftop water heaters, even strategically placed shade trees…and dozens of other commonsense measures…alternatives to soaring utility bills and building more and more power plants.

"Our state government has paid lip service to energy efficiency (EE) but…it’s been a low priority…Municipally owned utilities like Austin Energy and San Antonio’s CPS Energy are doing a good job of promoting energy efficiency. They provide home energy audits and give generous rebates and other incentives…Some customer-owned rural electric co-ops are also ahead of the curve…But private, investor-owned utility companies…profit from increased consumption…[and] lag far behind…"

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"Under current law, the Public Utility Commission (PUC)… is supposed to review and approve the EE programs of the utilities. But other state agencies oversee EE programs, too…Consolidating these efforts into one agency with a clear mandate to promote EE would streamline state regulation and create more savings potential…

"…Over the past year and a half, the PUC staff has worked on plans to increase the state’s EE goals…[but] the three PUC commissioners, all appointees of Gov. Rick Perry, slashed the staff proposal dramatically. They reduced the efficiency goal from 1 percent of peak demand by 2014 to just one-third of the growth in demand by 2013…barely above the goal already in place…It’s time for the Legislature to take control and create a new, independent state agency that can put consumers first…"