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By Paul Bean
A March 12 rally at the State House hosted by opponents of carbon mandates urged repeal of the Clean Heat Standard (Act 18).
“The worst act for governance you can engage in is passing these mandates do nothing of substance on the scale to meet those goals mandates while leaving Vermont taxpayers on the hook to be sued at significant expense because of your failure to come up with a realistic plan,” said energy policy analyst, Rob Roper, one of the organizers of the rally. “Repeal Act 18 repeal the Global Warming Solutions Act!”
“There’s gonna be people here today who dismiss our words and our actions. They will claim that opposition to the Clean Heat Standard comes from ‘Big Oil,'” said Judy Taranovich owner of Proctor Gas. Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark is currently suing “Big Oil,” companies like ExxonMobil and Shell. The case seeks to hold these companies accountable for “misleading Vermonters about the impact of fossil fuels on climate change, aiming to recover damages caused by their deceptive practices.”
“Vermont, I’m here to tell you nothing could be farther from the truth. My name is Judy Taranovich, I run a small propane company in Proctor, Vermont with 11 employees. I’m one of the 11. I’m the ‘Big Oil’ they’re talking about,” she joked, making the point that her company was not exactly “big.”
“I am one of 100 small energy providers in Vermont who stand against this law,” continued Taranovich. “I understand what the Clean Heat Standard would do and the devastating impact it would have on small energy companies their employees their customers and their communities. Yet the largest fossil fuel company in Vermont supported Act 18 and actively lobbied for it to become law… Green Mountain Power is the largest fossil fuel company [in Vermont], they own the gas system natural gas system, they own all the electric, which a lot of it comes from fossil fuels, and they’re owned by Gas Metro out of Canada.”
A Republican effort to repeal Act 18 is now in the Senate Natural Resources Committee and may eventually be debated on the floor of the Senate.
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Categories: Energy, Legislation
When the outgoing Commissioner (June Tierney) says what she said about this sham, I don’t know how anybody under the “Golden Dumb” could have the stones to continue on this inhumane course, when she, a person with real world knowledge of this bologna, states otherwise. I’m not sure if this is a real word or not, and really do not care, but I would classify the Legislature’s position as of the highest degree of “disingenuousity” ! (lies) What ever happened to the good ole days when politicians like we have now were tarred and feathered and run out of town ?
And the lady Pres of GMP….is she still Bernie’s girlfriend? –D Morrisseau
So many more Vermonters would have attended if we weren’t already strapped to 2 perhaps 3 jobs to make ends meet. maybe if we can’t defeat this, it needs to go on the ballot. soonest, like at the primaries where maybe we can vote out those who would tax us to death.
The clean heat standard (or whatever the democrats are now calling it?!) needs to be repealed!).
After someone handed Judy Taranovich the pictures of two 16 oz propane tanks she explained that if someone bought them to use on a camping trip in another state and returned home crossing state lines with partially used tanks, this would qualify them as gas distributer and could bring them a $10K fine for non-compliance to those regulations. Yes, this is an example of how inept the writing of this horrible bill is and there should be widespread pressure on your legislators to repeal the Clean Heat Standard.
You should also talk with others about it – forward friends and family, members of community groups you engage with, articles about this matter so that they too are willing to Stand Up and be a Voice. The days for us to huddle in our cozy homes next to the fireplace for winter are gone. We need to pick up the phone or write our legislators so they hear from us and our cozy homes will be here and affordable next year, too.
Has any one dropped off a bucket of tar and a bag of feathers at the state house yet???? Make sure you leave a box of bananas.
Thank you so much to everyone for showing up, supporting this event and spreading the word. And many thanks to Senator Williams. Rep. Higley, Rob Roper, Judy Taranovich, JT Dodge, and all the legislators who were there to help share information and offer a reality check and options to the current dangerous climate and energy policy. Vermont can do better. Repeal the Clean Heat Standard and the Global Warming Solutions Act.
I heard a comment stated the actual “standard” is to eliminate small businesses by overwhelming them with such high costs of doing business, the average person cannot start or maintain a small to average-size private business. Sounds and looks about right to me. Even the so-called “start ups” to create the green grid will be taken out or absorbed by the big dogs. All the money simply disappears into the pockets of the 1% and foreign countries feeding on and swallowing up the USA piece by piece. It is a scam and it is nefarious – regardless of the flowery language or fear mongering used to flim-flam and bankrupt the populace.