New Haven Independent

Newberry spoke Tuesday night at a meeting of Fight The Hike, a local group calling for undoing the state deregulation plan that many believe is partly responsible for huge rate hikes.

Newberry, pictured above with longtime anti-nuclear activist Mitzi Bowman, opposed the electric deregulation bill that passed in the General Assembly almost ten years ago. “I said then that this was being sold as competition, lower rates and clean energy, and it’s not about any of that,” he said. Rather, “It was about nuclear bankruptcy restructuring, where they socialized the debt for nuclear waste, for decommissioning the nuclear plants and for plant construction.”

He said all the financial arrangements are in place to support deregulation. It will be difficult, but not impossible, to re-regulate electric power in the state. “It’s a matter of political will,” he said.

Newberry suggested that the group fight for relief from high utility rates as a short-term goal in this legislative session, and then focus more long-term on possible solutions to high rates through, for example, instituting public power or promoting non-investor-owned renewable energy.

Although members of Fight the Hike all seem to be in favor of renewable energy, such as wind and solar, Newberry pointed out a contradiction with their fight for a rate rollback.

“The goals of low rates and renewable energy are two different goals.” In fact, he said, “high rates improve the solar electric marketplace.”

The two dozen people at the meeting discussed ways they can reach out to UI ratepayers “” especially those with lower incomes “who are really getting killed by this rate hike,” as one person said.

Mary Johnson (pictured), co-convener of the group, said it’s fine to speak to like-minded groups, “but there’s a vast community out there of ratepayers who are totally unorganized and that’s who we have to help.” Click here for more of her thoughts.

They decided to continue with the petition they initiated last month; to try to set up a website; to reach out to small business owners who are being badly hurt by the jump in their electric bills; to explore organizing a statewide conference on the issue; and to hold a news conference to condemn their treatment when they testified before the joint Energy Committee on Feb. 14. Many people at the meeting complained about waiting all day to testify and then finding their names were crossed out on the list, while executives of the utilities were allowed to testify first and at length.