A brief summary of my energy policy positions...

Energy policy is going to become a little more controversial over the next year in Colorado so I thought I might take the time to elaborate on my energy positions.

First and foremost I believe we can reach a future with 100% renewable, low-emission energy sources, but I do not believe that future is going to come soon or easily. That being said we should do everything we can to promote the development and implementation of solar, wind, hydroelectric, and geothermal energy.

We know that renewable sources cannot completely replace sources like natural gas, coal, and oil in the short-term so we must do two things: (1) restrain ourselves from demonizing the oil and gas industry and (2) reduce the amount of energy we need, thereby closing the gap between what renewable sources can provide and what we use.

We can reduce the energy we use by supporting conservation and waste-reduction efforts, by supporting energy efficiency programs for homes and businesses, by setting standards for energy efficiency in new public building construction (including schools), and by incentivizing responsible energy use.

We must also come to terms with the fact that our transportation and environmental policies are inseparable from our energy policies. For transportation we must invest in an intra-state transit network, build vehicle charging infrastructure for electric vehicles, and promote alternative transportation development. For the environment we must strive to have the best air and water quality, open space reserves, and emission standards.

Fracking is where the controversy in energy policy is and I support Governor Hickenlooper’s task force to broker compromise solutions between the oil and gas industry, environmental groups, local governments, and state interests. I do not want us to get to a point where we will not even discuss fracking because we are afraid of it, I think we should have a rational discussion with unbiased scientific information and pursue an energy policy that protects all Coloradans while giving business the ability to thrive, create jobs, and supply our short-term energy needs.

Energy policy is a broad topic so, as you might suspect, reaching our energy goals requires us to move forward on several different fronts. As much as is possible I want those solutions to come from private industry and local government, I do not think we can accomplish our long-term goals by having state or federal government take the lead alone and spend on the issue indefinitely. There are ways to encourage private industry to do things like add electric vehicle charging stations to existing gas stations, there are ways to give local government the freedom to decide how to support efficiency without a state-mandated program, there are ways to give the state a chance to launch pilot programs and lead the way on many energy solutions.

As with most policies we are not faced with a choice of one extreme or the other, but finding the best solutions will be hard work and require us to think creatively and not deal in absolutes of one or the other. We need an "all of the above" energy policy.

Never a good sign...

Senate President Brandon Shaffer is pushing SB12-019 which will suspend pay for legislators if the General Assembly fails to deliver a budget on time. In the case that the legislature does not agree on a budget and a school finance bill each member of the General Assembly will have their pay and reimbursements suspended until they deliver a bill (or until December 1) as a way to encourage them to come to agreement. 

This gets kind of complicated even if you are a regular follower of Colorado politics. The General Assembly is required (or "is limited"... depending on your preference) to be in session 120 days each year and this period occurs as a regular legislative session from January to May. Special sessions may be called beyond that but are rare. If the legislature fails to deliver the budget before its "120 Days Cap" then it must adjourn and reopen in a special session. If it does, and if Senate Bill 19 passes, then legislators will not receive pay or reimbursements until the budget is delivered. Along with pressing the urgency of the issue in a special session this would also give the legislators an additional incentive to get a budget passed in our current regular session.

It is also important to note two things: (1) that legislators receive $30,000/year divided into 12-month increments, so that salary gets paid out when the legislature is not in session, and if Senate Bill 19 suspends their pay it will apply to their salaries for the remainder of the year; and (2) they will receive that pay eventually as "back pay" when the budget is passed so it is not a forfeiture of pay but just a suspension.

My hometown newspaper, The Coloradoan, ran an editorial today that argued that legislation should not be required to enforce accountability, I agree. Our legislators should be able to do their jobs without us essentially taking out an insurance policy on them. Unfortunately that may be where we are headed and the most responsible choice in a sea of poor choices on the part of our elected leaders.  If they do fail to complete their work in the regular session I want them to at least feel the pain of that failure.

Initially I was very supportive of this bill, but there has been an amendment to it requiring a study of the Colorado budget process that is unnecessary and a strange addition in my opinion. Because of that I do not support the entire bill and I hope to see that study taken out.

It's never a good sign when the President of the Senate is already banking on the failure of the General Assembly.

Executive Order on Fracking

Yesterday Governor Hickenlooper signed Executive Order B2012-002 which created a task force to develop cooperative strategies between industry and government for oil and gas development, with particular regard to fracking.

The task force brings together members of the Cabinet, Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, oil and gas industry, local government, environmental groups, and the legislature to create real solutions to our energy future and address community concerns regarding the safety of fracking.

Pay close attention to this task force, with any luck a strong forum to address fracking will emerge and reasonable solutions will be found.