Posted on 12/05/2004 10:27:31 PM PST by NormsRevenge
No one could say that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger lacks energy. His energy policy, however, has been lacking. Schwarzenegger came to power in last year's dramatic recall election after former Gov. Gray Davis came to grief over the state's budget and electric power crises. By now, everyone knows how Schwarzenegger has resorted to some of the borrowing and bookkeeping gimmicks that gradually got Davis in hot water with voters. But overlooked are the potential parallels to Davis' inattention to a brewing energy crisis.
The electric power crisis of 2001 seemed to come on suddenly but in reality brewed for more than a year before it shocked the state. Davis did not focus on it until the storm gathered and spawned blackouts.
Even after the crisis subsided, he paid the price, for his once sky-high approval rating never recovered. Similar issues plague us today. Many new power plants agreed to in the Davis administration have languished, in part due to a decline in the merchant power business and because power generators aren't sure what the California market will look like since the underlying problems were papered over rather than solved. Yet the economy and the population continue to grow. As a result, supply is getting tight again. The state squeaked past a few scares last summer as it reached record highs in power usage. In anticipation of next summer, Schwarzenegger energy adviser Joe Desmond has talked with companies about bringing retired, less-efficient plants back on line.
Schwarzenegger's notion to deal with the supply issue is to have the utilities enter into long-term contracts with merchant power companies. The approach, in the governor's view, would also deal with the issue of price, as the contracts would be regulated by the Public Utilities Commission.
(Excerpt) Read more at sacbee.com ...
if they do the contract way of getting services, that will bring them kind of close to what the feds are doing with IT services.
they are using contractors as a way to get a fresh workforce in for considerably less than what they would pay for the same amount of government pension workers....
hmmm, I don't think I would ever want to take over any organizatoin (be it a state government or a small business)that was intrusted to the care of a liberal for an extended period of time. They just seem to screw everything up so much. It would just be a royal pain in the a** trying to fix it all.
For the record, they live in Northern CA, about an hour or two west of Tahoe.
California is undoubtedly the most beautiful state in the lower 48. The mountains are amazing. The forests are something to behold. My Pop has a 150 tall Sugar Pine in his front yard.
Hundreds of thousands of acres are open to the public to enjoy as well.
However....after several visits to that most wonderful State I must tell you that I have concluded that a majority of its residents must be certifiably insane. I base this conclusion on what I have seen and heard of the State Government.
Now, I have no dog in the "Ahnold" thing. I wish him all the luck in the world reforming California State government. It's just I don't think that Jesus Christ himself would be able to sort out the mess that the citizens of CA have brought upon themselves.
It's really sad. California is so wonderful. You'd think that it would attract the best and brightest of Americans. In a lot of ways it has, but it has also attracted the most bizzare collection of lunatics I've ever seen in my life.
Especially along the coast line.
Oh well, consider this the end of my rant. I had such a great time visiting the fam over Thanksgiving in North CA. It's just a shame that the place is run by its citizens.
L
"The governor wants to accelerate the adoption of renewable power - wind, solar, geothermal, biomass. He succeeded in persuading the PUC to move its deadline from 2017 to 2010 for having 20 percent of California's power renewable. But if we're going to double the proportion of electric power from renewable sources in the next five years, the program needs to get in a higher gear."
The dumbass is going to spend a ton of money on subsidizing silly windmills and compost heaps, while southern California heat overloads the grid. How about Mr. Republican start doing what they keep accusing those evil Republicans of doing--give the utilities a 125% income tax credit on any money they spend on grid improvements? Then they have a interest!
You came that close to me and didn't even dial me up???
I'm glad you enjoyed your visit in the brand spanking new Sierra-Nevada CONservancy just established by a so-called Republican Governor.
I generally agree with all your comments. This state has deliberately made it'self totally ungovernable since I arrived in 1964! It righted it'self for a time under Reagan, but then Governor Moonbeam started driving it right into the damn ditch!!!
Now it's been in the ditch so long, the people are actually starting to think it's normal. They wouldn't know how to treat a government that started making sense for a change!!!
The Governator is tied down by a hopelessly socialist legislature. He is threatening an initiative to "blow up" the current government's inefficient "boxes" organization and the shamelessly gerrymandered leg. districts. I think he realizes that a populist appeal is really the only way to rule over an entrenched, arrogant, bureacracy that has grown out of touch with its people. Don't dismiss Mr. Universe lightly. He may very well continue to surprise...
My ILs are about 79 miles east of Sacremento, and about 50 miles west of Tahoe. Their house is literally right at the edge of the Eldorado National Forest.
We're going out there next year about this time. If you're serious about hooking up, FM me and we can make some plans.
I can't tell you how much fun it was to take Clan Lurkers Durango back into those mountains and beat around. My Father in law is a big enviro, but after a day beating around on those trails, and shooting in some makeshift ranges I caught him 'building' a truck on the Dodge website.
He was looking at a Ram 2500, but I think I have him talked into the 3500 with the dual rear wheels and the big diesel engine.
I feel so dirty......
L
Most beautiful state in the lower 48? I think NOT.
RB
Well, it's certainly prettier than Texas. For instance. :-)
This is one of the reasons I decided to install a 40kW automatic transfer generator with a 500 Gal propane tank at the new house I'm building... I can go at least a week with no power. If I can get propane deliveries I can go on indefinitely...
The house is also up on a small mountain where power is easily disrupted.
Well, solar is remarkably useful for LA and southern California, where the power issue is the worst. And I don't think you're right about the price of solar power having been static. I'm pretty sure production of energy has gone up relative to price.
That said, if people aren't buying it themselves, WTF is the point of the STATE buying it!?!?
There are two solutions to Californians' problems. One is dealing with their NIMBY attitude, for which they pay MILLIONS yearly, and building power plants on a fast track, without myriad objections allowed. The other is deregulating entirely and letting the market get going again, instead of half-ass-regulating like they did under GD.
Instead Ahnold wants to tinker with the market like GD did and f around with stuff that won't work. He's gonna Gray the GOP for good.
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