That was the alternate headline that came to mind when I read this story detailing environmental groups’ concerns about Duke Energy’s influence on state policy debates.?
If my headline makes no sense, perhaps a review of Bruce Yandle‘s “Baptists and bootleggers” theory would help.
It should be easy to identify environmentalists in this scenario as the Baptists fighting air pollution, global warming, and other ills. But how is Duke Energy the bootlegger?
Daren Bakst has detailed on several occasions Duke’s willingness to accept new environmental regulations such as Senate Bill 3. While the regulations could prove costly to a company such as Duke Energy or Progress Energy, the real losers are consumers.
First, the new regulations lead to higher production costs, and consumers pay the price through higher electric bills. Second, the regulations create a high hurdle for any company that would like to compete with the big power boys. That means consumers are less likely to reap the benefits of a competitive marketplace.
