The Springfield Republican – MassLive: Gov. Healey announces energy bill that promises to reduce costs
Source: The Springfield Republican – MassLive
SPRINGFIELD — A year ago, dozens of people crammed into a City Council meeting begging officials to find ways to cut their soaring gas and electric bills.
Now Gov. Maura T. Healey is announcing a partnership with Citizens Energy that pledges to do just that.
“We are laser-focused on this issue and every day we are thinking about ways to lower costs for you and people across the state,” Healey said.
As part of the bill, Citizens Energy, a nonprofit energy company now run by Joseph Kennedy III, will join with the state to help fund the distribution systems which raise the costs of everyone’s bill.
The partnership is based on one developed by the nonprofit company in California, which has saved ratepayers millions, he said.
“What we are saying is those investments need to be made to make sure we have the energy we need and … we need to adapt to climate change,” Kennedy said.
But profits from the improvements are being made in the community and should stay there, he said. The effort is expected to cut to save hundreds of dollars off people’s annual electricity bills, Kennedy said.
How it works is utility companies raise the money to make investments to improve or add substations and transmission wires to carry electricity to homes, which is one of the biggest costs of utilities, said Melissa Lavinson, executive director in the state Office of Energy Transformation.
The model will allow nonprofits like Citizens Energy to also serve as investors for energy company infrastructure and they will get the same return the for-profit investors will receive, she said.
“Because they are a nonprofit, they will give it right back to ratepayers or communities,” Lavinson said.
Some of the other provisions of the legislation allow more flexibility of when and how energy companies buy power so they can take advantage of times when the costs are lower and changes that will allow new solar and other power plants connected to the grid faster, she said.
Healey was joined by multiple state legislators, including state Sen. Jacob Oliveira, D-Ludlow, and state Reps. Bud L. Williams, Anthony Puppolo and Carlos Gonzalez, D-Springfield, and Brian Ashe, D-Longmeadow. But it was the members of the senior center who gave her the biggest applause when she pledged to lower their bills.
“It is about common sense and pragmatic leadership to get things done and tone down the noise,” Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said when introducing Healey.
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