RICHMOND – Today, the House Committee on Commerce and Labor advanced a measure (Senate Bill 966) that will greatly expand energy efficiency and renewable energy in Virginia, return our electric utilities to regulatory oversight, and shield consumers from inflated costs going forward while also giving them an upfront refund due from the 2015 rate freeze.
SB 966 from Sen. Frank Wagner (R-Virginia Beach) is now headed to the full House for consideration.
In response to today’s vote, Michael Town, executive director of the Virginia League of Conservation Voters, issued the following statement:
“Heading into this year’s General Assembly, one thing was clear: the 2015 rate freeze was harming the public and holding back significant progress on the environment. At the outset of the debate on how to repeal this measure and replace it with something better, we said the legislation needed to do three things: give ratepayers back the money they were owed, grow renewable energy and energy efficiency, and return utilities to regulatory oversight. This bill accomplishes these goals and goes even further. It is not perfect – no compromise is – but the transformational changes this bill lays out will secure Virginia’s clean energy future while making meaningful regulatory reforms and protecting consumers from paying more than they should to power their daily lives.”