Sen. Scott Sandall (R-Tremonton) argues in favor of his proposed Senate Bill 224 (Energy Independence Amendments) during floor debate in the Utah Senate on Feb. 21. That proposal would empower the Utah Public Service Commission to continue to operate two coal-fired power plants in southern Utah (Image courtesy of Facebook).
SALT LAKE CITY – The debate over Senate Bill 224 is heating up in the final days of the Utah Legislature here.
That proposal (Energy Independence Amendments) by Sen. Scott Sandall (R-Tremonton) would empower the Utah Public Service Commission to continue to operate two coal-fired power plants in Emory County while surrounding states begin to cut their use of coal.
In Feb. 21 debate on the Senate floor, Sandall defended the bill as a common sense measure to ensure that Utah has access to “… low cost, low risk and reliable energy” now and in the future.
“Utah is an ‘all of the above’ state” when it comes to energy production, he explained, adding that the Legislature is “interested in new technologies and applying them where they make sense.
“What doesn’t make sense is abandoning proven, dispatchable energy resources that we need to power our economy.”
Senate Bill 224 was opposed by Sen. Nate Blouin (D-Salt Lake) who argued that the proposal would undermine the state’s process of making regulatory decisions by “kicking the can down the road” in terms of deciding the fate of those coal-fired plants in southern Utah.
Blouin’s stand is supported by Logan Mitchell, an energy analyst with Utah Clean Energy, and Michelle Beck, the director of the Utah Office of Consumer Services, as well as a host of climate change activists.
Mitchell noted that the coal-fired plants were 50 years old and need to be retired.
Green New Deal advocates in Utah and throughout the nation are betting that advances in battery storage capacity will eventually make renewable energy sources like wind and solar power more reliable and dispatchable in the future.
So far, the Republican majority in the Utah Legislature isn’t buying into that pipe-dream.
“Utahns deserve to have energy that is reliable and affordable,” according to Senate President J. Stuart Adams (R-Layton). “Our state has everything it needs to achieve energy independence – abundant nature resources, innovative industries, cutting-edge research from our universities, business willing to invest and a determined spirit.”
For their part, Sandall and his legislative allies are confident that when surrounding states that put of their faith in wind, solar and battery storage run short of power in emergencies they will queue up to purchase Utah electricity at a premium prices.
“We can’t just rely on wind and solar to hold us over,” Sandall said, “until promising technologies like nuclear or geothermal reach operational and economic maturity.
“We also can’t allow other states to continue to push their policies onto Utah while they undermine reliability and cost stability.”
That kind of pressure is coming from the Biden administration as well as other states.
Utah officials are at odds with the Biden administration over the Environmental Protection Agency’s recently announced “good neighbor” policy, which aims to cut down on cross-state smog pollution from power plants and other industrial sources.
That plan would require 23 states – including Utah – to take steps to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxide that form ground-level ozone – better known as smog — that make it difficult for downwind states to meet standards set for ozone by the 2015 National Ambient Air Quality Act.
“Unlike the federal government,” said House Majority Leader Mike Schultz (R-Hooper), “we’re taking a thoughtful approach to ensure we have the energy supply Utah needs.
“We will continue to pass policies based on reality and push back against impractical regulations while working toward a cleaner energy future.
SB 224 passed the Utah Senate by a floor vote of 23-to-6 on Feb. 21.
A companion bill introduced by Rep. Carl Albrecht (R-Emory County) is now being debated on the House floor, after passing the House Public Utilities, Energy and Technology Committee on Feb. 27.