WESTERN GOVERNORS TO OFFER RECOMMENDATIONS ON FEDERAL ENERGY POLICY

JACKSON, Wyo. - Western governors today agreed to work in concert to deliver recommendations to the incoming presidential administration on a rational federal energy policy.

In his keynote address to the Western Governors Association, Jeff Immelt, CEO of General Electric, said governors in the West are uniquely positioned to influence the national debate on energy.

“The people who are going to drive the discussion on clean energy are governors - the policy will be shaped here,” Immelt said. He urged the governors to consider renewable portfolio standards and other tools that drive technology development in the area of renewable energy. It’s important that a national RPS be developed, rather than multiple independent standards that Balkanize the marketplace, he said.

Gov. Dave Freudenthal asked about the mechanics of creating incentives for the implementation of clean energy technologies.

“How do we structure incentives so that they are technology neutral but move us toward the result? There is an immense amount of money sitting on the sidelines that is waiting to be invested. We need to figure out how to use government action to activate the private sector in a way that modifies the behavior of the economy but doesn’t choose one technology over another.”

Immelt said developments in the clean energy industry will produce high-paying jobs and other economic benefits.   
“Green is green,” he said. “This innovation is a powerful tool for economic growth. We believe green energy technology will be the economic driver for this century.”

Immelt and Jeff Sterba, CEO of PNM Resources and chairman of the Edison Electric Institute and the Electric Power Research Institute, offered critiques of the current state of federal energy policy and carbon management, which Immelt called “chaotic.”

“It is difficult to say what the energy policy of the United States is - there isn’t one,” Sterba said. He pointed to problems with the Department of Energy, which he said is well-equipped to conduct research but is less able to move ideas from the laboratory into public policy. 

Incoming WGA Chairman Gov. Jon Huntsman of Utah asked Sterba and Immelt for suggestions on what such recommendations could include.

Among their suggestions were:
- A vision statement on what the nation’s energy supply should look like in the future, with a diverse mix of sources including fossil fuels, nuclear and renewables.
- A renewed focus on energy efficiency and conservation
- A national renewable portfolio standard mandating that a portion of the nation’s power be generated from renewable sources.
- A strategy for the national grid and suggestions for upgrades and improvements. 
- The development of tax incentives to reduce the cost of technology development and to promote conservation.
- The adoption of a price for carbon with an appropriate glide path for the implementation of carbon management.
- Encouraging the educational system to focus on this topic. 

Immelt said there is no time to waste. “We need to start now and begin doing a lot of different things all at the same time.” 

Canadian premiers expressed their commitment to support the Western governors’ effort.

“We sit here in this beautiful part of the world and we know that if we don’t change now, our kids won’t inherit this. We don’t need to discuss whether climate is changing - it has changed. There is no place in the world that is better positioned to address this than the U.S. and Canada, particularly the western region. Let’s get used to leading,” said Premier Gordon Campbell of British Columbia.

The meeting began with a sobering presentation from Erik Peterson of the Center for Strategic and International Studies on the pressures on the planet inflicted by population growth, urbanization and increasing demands on infrastructure and water systems.

Several governors remained skeptical that a consensus document on energy policy would have the desired effect in Washington.

“Candidly I don’t have full confidence that it will result in anything but the status quo,” said Gov. Christine Gregoire of Washington. “I’m behind this idea of delivering something, but I think it should be more than a consensus document. What we need is the hearts and minds of our constituents to be behind this. Should we be asking that this document have people beyond the Western Governors Association to support it?”

As incoming chairman of WGA, Gov. Huntsman set the stage for the next year of the organization’s work.

“We need to develop a comprehensive bipartisan framework on energy - this must be first and foremost the most important thing we stay focused on as a group this year,” he said. Huntsman also plans to add a global dimension to the group by inviting dialogue with the Chinese government on energy and technology development. 

Sterba said the governors could make a significant difference by recommending that the new president take the lead on greenhouse gas legislation.

“The way to break the deadlock in Washington is to have someone come in in the middle and exert the necessary executive leadership,” he said. “Good policy is made in the middle, it is rarely made on the extremes. We need to recognize that we’ve underinvested in technology development for decades. The reality is that energy prices are not coming down.”

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