Tag: Granholm

In 2012, an even MORE ridiculous 25x25 requirement was promoted (and failed) as a constitutional amendment, in a state which has a monstrous electricity appetite as a leader in manufacturing.  Now as the legislature approaches the crossroads of [Oh gosh we can't meet the 10%!] and [What the hell happened to electricity prices?] in Michigan, another 35% 'mandate' pusher shows up with a 'conservative' emphasis and the useful idiots who have already signed on.

As soon as Michigan State Representative Mike Shirkey announced a solid-as-steel return to electricity competition in our state, the rust of cronyism began eating away at the plan. Snyder stepped up the call for increased renewable energy in the midst of the current mandate meltdown, and a new shadow group was formed with friendly 'conservative' faces to front it. (see useful idiot mention above)

Sometimes however, its worth looking to other experts who have a different take on such things.

Are the mandates even legal?

Thanks to the TB912, and Dining Room productions for another useful and informative video.

As the drum beat for real electric competition picks up, its interesting to see utilities offering reductions in rates.  How convenient and thick with irony is it that as Mike Shirkey starts beating said drum, DTE proclaims accross the board rate cuts! From Crains:

"Last month, DTE announced it would lower electric rates starting this month for business and most industrial customers between 5.5 percent to 7.4 percent and drop residential rates by an average of 6.5 percent. The cuts are expected to save about $80 a year for homeowners and varying amounts for businesses based on usage.

It was DTE's first rate reduction since 2007, when the company lowered base rates by $80 million. "

Yes timing IS everything when attempting to pass legislation that limits consumer choice.  Perhaps its good to look benevolent so that people say "what a nice organization this is," and let up pressure on competition legislation.  It worked in 2007, and monopoly legislation passed. And now that the peasants with pitchforks and torches are approaching,

"Since 2008, requests (and approvals) for rate increases have been nearly four times the historic average. Meanwhile our retail electric energy costs have gone up more than 30 percent, while wholesale costs for electric energy in the Midwest region have gone down almost 50 percent.

Let them eat it.

We knew the costs that "green energy" programming in Michigan would incur on the taxpayers left in the state.  The utilities knew this as well, and wasted no efforts in having such draconian reversals of free markets passed with the likes of HB 5524 (2007):

"Passed 78 to 29 in the House on September 18, 2008, to adopt a compromise version of the bill reported by a House-Senate conference committee. This would mostly end the state's electric competition law that allows customers to choose an alternative provider; allow the utilities to impose surcharges on customers so they can recoup the "costs" incurred from Michigan's experiment with competitive electricity markets; and phase out over five years the current cross-subsidization of residential customers by commercial and industrial ones. The bill would guaranty DTE and Consumers Power at least 90 percent of the utility business in the areas they serve, even if other providers offer lower prices. The bill is tie-bared to Senate Bill 213, which imposes "renewable" energy mandates on utilities. "

SB 213 was a doozy, with each chamber ratcheting up the mandate for renewable energy produced each time it was reconciled:

"Introduced by Sen. Patricia Birkholz (R) on February 20, 2007, to mandate that electric utilities acquire at least 4 percent of their power from "renewable" sources, growing to at least 8 percent by 2013. .. to mandate that electric utilities acquire at least 7 percent of their power from "renewable" and "clean" sources (including "carbon capture" coal plants) by 2015 .. to mandate that Michigan electric utilities acquire 10 percent of their power from "renewable" sources by the end of 2015. .."

And as long as the power monopoly remained, it was no problem for the major utilities in Michigan.  They get 90% of the market GUARANTEED by legislation, and the ratepayer gets the shaft through piss poor legislation and cronyism.

One legislator is bringing some attention back to this.

"We'll bring in some Air Force folks right here in our district. We can have an oversight reform committee hearing right here and we'll investigate," said Bentivolio in response to an audience question. "I'd like to find out about it too."

Oh, Lord.  Please Kerry, don't play with your vegetables.  We here at RM didn't bust our asses in 2012, just to have a few PaulTards in the crowd grenade us in 2014.

But despite such embarrassing diversions the first-term Congressman, say political insiders, will be difficult to unseat in 2014 - even with last week's announcement that businessman [Foreclosure Lawyer] and Michigan Republican Party establishment favorite Dave Trott has thrown his hat into the ring. Such is the power of incumbency, and the deep pocketbooks of the GOP's insurgent Ron Paul/Libertarian wing that backs Bentiviolo.

In the redrawn CD-11, I wouldn't be so cocksure as to hang my hat on "the power of incumbency".  Not in Oakland, and Wayne County's den of vipers, anyway.

Note that her reign of terror ended with MANY closures and empty union halls.

In an April 25, 2011 email, the head of the Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association advised state employees to delete emails pertaining to a potential recommendation that Michigan's noise level limit for wind turbines be lowered.

Written 14 months ago, the context of the email was what appears to have been a successful effort by government bureaucrats to derail a pending noise level reduction recommendation. The email advising state employees delete conversations was one of several emails obtained through the Freedom of Information Act pertaining to the wind turbine noise level issue.

"I would delete these types of emails because of the possibility of FOIA requests," John Sarver wrote in the email.

Sarver is now the executive director of the Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association (GLREA), which is a statewide non-profit that promotes and facilitates the use of renewable energy in Michigan. Most, if not all, of the renewable energy sources GLREA supports require government subsidies, mandates or both for their survival.

Rest here

MOU

"The Great Lakes Compact shows the value of cooperation across the Great Lakes basin," the governor said.

Entanglements with other deceitful grant money parasite John Sarver types and bureaucrats from Illinois, Minnesota, New York, Pennsylvania, and the Feds?

Illegal scheme continued despite law explicitly stating providers are not government employees

MIDLAND -- Michigan's 60,000 home health care aides should no longer have so-called union dues skimmed from their subsidy checks as a result of an informal but binding opinion letter issued today by Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette. The opinion was issued in response to a request by Rep. Paul Opsommer, R-DeWitt, six weeks after Gov. Rick Snyder signed legislation ending the stealth unionization. The Service Employees International Union has taken some $30 million from the state's most vulnerable residents over the last six years, including more than $680,000 since the scheme was outlawed.

"This episode demonstrates how government-sector unions often act in ways that benefit themselves at the cost of taxpayers and their shanghaied members," said Mackinac Center Legal Foundation Director Patrick J. Wright. "The independent contractors and family members who provide aid to the developmentally disabled were never government employees and should not have been paying dues in the first place."