Thanks to last week's non-adjournment, the House and Senate held skeleton sessions this week, as required by the state constitution. This may continue for a while; we'll file our Letter from Jones Street on Fridays if there's any news to report.
The real action this week happened a few blocks over at Gov. Josh Stein's office, where he used his veto powers on several bills, including two of special interest to Sierrans.
Late last Friday, Stein vetoed H402, the bill formerly known as the NC REINS Act and now called Limit Rules with Substantial Financial Costs. This one's a mess, setting unrealistic, unnecessary hurdles for creating or updating virtually any rule being considered for agency action. The bill's call for heavy legislative involvement not only would bog down the administrative AND legislative branches' work, but may also present an unconstitutional violation of their separation of powers.
We got great news on Wednesday as Stein vetoed S266, the "Ratepayer Risks Act," that shifts financial risks to Duke Energy's residential customers in North Carolina while allowing the utility to back out of its pledge to lower carbon emissions.
A day earlier, N.C. State researchers strengthened the case, warning that the bill would add $23 billion in unnecessary utility bill increases on families and businesses to pay for power plant fuel – information Stein cited in his veto statement.
It also didn't hurt that nearly 700 Sierra Club members and supporters sent messages to Stein in support of a veto – your voice really DOES have an impact!
Take action:
The General Assembly has wide latitude about when to consider override votes on any of Stein's veto. It's urgent that we speak up now and in the coming weeks, because majority party leaders could call a vote at any time they think they've got the attendance and support needed for an override.
Use our forms to write to your state lawmakers NOW to urge them to uphold Governor Stein's vetoes on:
- S266, the inaccurately named Power Bill Reduction Act, and
- H402, Limit Rules with Substantial Financial Costs.
- And don't forget these other opportunities to speak up on pending legislation!
If you're out at parades or other Independence Day holidays this weekend, keep an eye out for your state legislators. Grab the chance to tell them face-to-face about these two bad bills and why you want them to uphold Governor Stein's vetoes.
Keep an eye out: We'll have more ways you can help us protect these vetoes. We need to be loud and persistent about the damage these bills could do to our state, our families, our communities and our environment.