A bill passed by the N.C. General Assembly and vetoed by Gov. Josh Stein would cost North Carolina billions in investments and lost tax revenue, while erasing tens of thousands of job opportunities, a new study finds.
BW Research analyzed the economic impact of Senate Bill 266 on behalf of the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association (NCSEA) and the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). The study, released today (Thursday), indicates that the bill will eliminate 50,700 job opportunities and $47.2 billion of investments due to less renewable energy being connected to the electric grid, while costing the state $1.5 billion in unrealized tax revenue.
Stein vetoed Senate Bill 266 on July 2, a week after the N.C. Sierra Club and other organizations held a news conference urging him to do so, noting that the legislation would increase greenhouse gas emissions by canceling Duke Energy's pledge to cut carbon emissions by 2030, and could increase fuel costs paid by ratepayers by $23 billion.
The NC General Assembly has indicated it will take up override votes on this and other vetoes on Tuesday. The N.C. Sierra Club, ratepayers, and other social justice and environmental organizations will hold a rally against S266 at Freedom Park next to the Legislative Building on Monday evening.
Statement by Chris Herndon, Chapter Director of the N.C. Sierra Club, on the BW Research findings:
SB266 looks worse and worse the more we study it – as lawmakers should have done before voting to pass it. This report clearly shows how this rushed and poorly researched bill would reduce North Carolina's energy capacity, eliminate thousands of energy job opportunities, and cost our state billions of dollars in lost investments and tax revenue.
It was clear from the start how bad SB266 is for anyone who breathes air in North Carolina by letting Duke Energy off the hook for its 2030 carbon reduction promise. It's bad for Duke Energy's captive residential customers, because it shifts rates and risks from industrial to residential ratepayers, while also saddling them with "construction work in progress" (CWIP) costs for dirtier and more expensive power plants – which aren't even guaranteed to come on line. Now this new research shows how bad it will be for everyone in the state by undermining our clean energy economy.
With all this additional information and time to be fully educated about this damaging legislation, our state lawmakers must do what's best for the people they represent by sustaining Governor Stein's veto and killing this bill.