A Gift That Keeps On Taking

Just in time for winter - a $6 billion increase in Virginia’s power bills

Winter can be a rough time, make no mistake. Last winter was one of the coldest on record in Virginia, and I’ve heard predictions (tough to tell with weather, though) that this one will be just as bad. Lots of things can make it hard, but one of the things that hits people the hardest is that when winter temps go down, power bills go up. For some folks with less, it’s even worse since power bills take up a much higher percentage of their income.

If the EPA has its way with Virginia, the cost of staying warm is about to get much, much higher.

The EPA proposed rules that would clamp down on several perfectly functional power plants in Virginia. The full cost of those rules is becoming clearer:

The State Corporation Commission estimated that the rules will result in a whopping $6 billion in costs for Dominion customers alone,

and higher power bills all over Virginia, to say nothing of the punch to the economy in the form of lost jobs and revenue.
 
The insidious thing about regulations like these is that they have a very real cost that’s in every way as bad as a flat-out tax. But because it doesn’t show up as a line item on power bills, it’s easy for folks to miss. Yet estimates show that the total cost of federal regulations already far exceeds the total of all the personal and business income taxes levied in the United States - combined. Over-regulation oppresses hard-working Virginians.

While your “taxes” might not go up, your price for power at the light switch is rising, make no mistake.

I’ve been saying for a long time that our federal government’s attacks on what should be areas of State oversight are a massive problem. This is compounded by the fact that the agency running point for the President - the EPA - isn’t accountable to you, or me, or anyone but the president himself. We don’t elect them. If they enact bad policies, as they often do to further a political agenda, we can’t throw the bums out in November.
 
As I’ve also said before, I’m looking for ways to protect our Commonwealth’s and our citizen’s right to self-government. Finding ways to stand up to Washington is tricky, but as time passes and the regulations pile up, the necessity is obvious. I’m also considering a push to bring Virginia into a coalition of states that are currently suing the EPA to have these rules thrown out.
 
In the meanwhile? I encourage you to comment on the regulations (a sentence or two is all you need, and it can be as simple as politely telling the agency not to enact regulations that will shut down useful power plants and raise our power bills across the Commonwealth).

You can submit your comment at this link:

http://www.regulations.gov/#!submitComment;D=EPA-HQ-OAR-2013-0602-0001
 
You might also want to contact President Obama’s “good friend,” Governor Terry McAuliffe, and suggest the Governor send the same message to Obama. The link to contact the Governor is:

https://governor.virginia.gov/constituent-services/communicating-with-the-governors-office/

The comment period ends December 1st. Let’s do what we can before things get too chilly.