Oil prices provide fuel for the governor’s race
Burlington Free Press, July 11, 2008, by Terri Hallenbeck (link to article).
One gubernatorial challenger criticized Gov. Jim Douglas on Thursday for not putting the state in a better position to withstand high heating fuel prices. Another criticized him for not acting quickly enough on short-term remedies.
Douglas defended his efforts, including pressuring Congress this week for more low-income heating assistance money. “We will do what we need to do to make sure that no Vermonter goes cold this winter for lack of access to support from government,” Douglas said.
With fuel prices nearly double what they were a year ago, politicians are feeling the heat from voters and scrambling to show they have plans to respond.
Democratic candidate Gaye Symington proposed new programs she said would reduce Vermonters’ dependence on fossil fuels, including a system to help residents refit their homes with renewable energy sources paid for out of the fuel savings they eventually achieve.
Progressive Anthony Pollina called on Douglas and legislators to commit money from the state’s rainy-day funds in case the federal government falls short on low-income heating assistance and to help fuel dealers by backing their line of credit for fuel shipments.
Symington, who has been speaker of the House for four years, said Vermonters would not be in such a bind this winter if Douglas had worked to develop long-term renewable energy sources during his six years in office. Instead, she said, he has resisted many of the Legislature’s efforts to increase weatherization and efficiency programs.
Jason Gibbs, spokesman for Douglas, said the governor never resisted increases in weatherization funding and that delays on an efficiency program that eventually passed this year centered on disagreements with the Legislature’s proposed funding of the program.
In a proposal she dubbed “Efficiency Pays,” Symington called for a program similar to one in New Hampshire that helps residents install new heating systems or do weatherization work and pay for it through a charge on their electric bills that would be less than the savings the improvements yield.
Gibbs said Symington should bring that proposal to a task force working on heating issues.
She also proposed stimulating the biomass industry in Vermont. The proposal sounded similar to one Douglas made in November, calling for a partnership with the University of Vermont to develop biofuels such as swtichgrass for energy. Gibbs said that program is still in development.
Both of Pollina’s proposals are under consideration by the Legislature’s Joint Fiscal Committee, which plans to come back with proposals by the end of the month. Pollina said those discussions should be more public and more urgent. If legislators are still haggling with the governor over details after this month, he said, it could be too late to help prepare for the winter, he said.
Douglas opposes using rainy-day funds. “Rainy-day funds are for unanticipated shortfalls in revenue,” he said. “We certainly are not at that point now.”
Pollina disagreed. “Do we wait for someone to freeze? Why do we have to wait so long?” Pollina said. “I would rather us not wait. This is one of those instances when people look to government.”
Joint Fiscal Committee Chairwoman Susan Bartlett, D-Lamoille, has said she’s open to considering use of rainy-day funds but not for programs the federal government should be funding.
Contact Terri Hallenbeck at 651-4887 or thallenb@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com