This week’s stunning vote in a House committee to continue costly taxpayer subsidies of renewable energy companies has not ended Rep. Mike Hager’s effort to cap the subsidies. Democrats and a handful of Republicans voted to keep the subsidies as they are. Carolina Journal’s Dan Way reports the latest on Hager’s push to address a poor public policy decision.
A handful of House Republicans dealt a stunning blow to state Rep. Mike Hager’s bill to phase out slowly North Carolina’s subsidies, tax credits, and purchase mandates propping up renewable energy companies. Despite this setback, the Rutherford County Republican said he plans to bring House Bill 298 to another committee vote.
“I can bring it forth any time I want to” under House rules, Hager said. “I can bring it up as many times as I want to. Being the chairman [of the Public Utilities and Energy Committee], I would say there’s probably more than a possibility” that will happen.
Six Republicans voted against the Affordable and Reliable Energy Act in Hager’s committee Wednesday, helping to sink it on a 13-18 vote.
“This is a horrible vote for Republicans, and they need to be held to account for it,” said Dallas Woodhouse, state director of Americans for Prosperity. It was among 16 organizations that presented a letter in committee supporting passage of the bill.
“The idea that Republicans believe that ratepayers ought to subsidize out-of-state energy companies that cannot make it on their own in these tough economic times means that they need some serious education, and the people in our districts need to know about it,” Woodhouse said.
The House committee vote that dealt this effort a setback this week can be found here.
