Program Note: Tune into WDEL around 10:00am tomorrow to hear Tyler Nixon discussing McDowell’s latest afront to the public trust with Al Mascitti.
Today Harris McDowell III tried to ram through legislation that would direct Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) proceeds from greenhouse gas “cap and trade” to the SEU. Several of our astute readers were in attendance today when McDowell introduced (in committee) SB263. He was attempting to pass this legislation, sight unseen. Check it out, this bill was introduced today.
There were a few members of the public that stood up and expressed the need to review the legislation before voting it out of committee. That was enough to cause some Senators to urge the measure to be tabled, which it was. I think that this is the next domino in the Harris McDowell plan for a comfy retirement. Let’s look at this unreviewed bill:
The Secretary of the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control is hereby authorized to establish, implement and manage an auction program to sell CO2 allowances into a market based trading program consistent with the RGGI MOU and this statute. The Secretary shall make every effort to participate in a regional allowance auction with other RGGI states but may conduct a Delaware-only auction if such individual auction is found to be in the best interests of Delaware electric ratepayers, as determined by the Secretary, and after consultation with the Delaware Public Service Commission.
The Secretary need not establish, implement or manage the elements of the allowance auction program by regulation. However, the Secretary shall publish the elements of the auction program in the Delaware Register of Regulations no less than 60 days prior to Delaware’s participation in its first auction. The Secretary may modify the auction program as the Secretary deems necessary, but substantive modifications shall also be published in the Delaware Register of Regulations.
These are two big hunks of regulation from the full bill. Senator McDowell would like to send it to the floor without debate, review or public comment. Sadly, that seems to be about par for the course. By the way, McDowell maintains that the SEU is not out of order by operating extra-legally. I assume that Charlie Copeland is sticking by his vow to no longer attend the meetings.
Which brings me to another question, if Hairless McDowell feels like it is OK to bring up the freakin’ RGGI funding without review of his colleagues, why can’t he bring himself to submit a simple bill that would extend the SEU and fix the legal limbo that the task force finds itself in? I think that McDowell simply thinks that he isn’t accountable to anyone. Guess what Senator? You are accountable to us and we will have our say.