American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy - Chesapeake…

  American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy - Chesapeake Climate Action Network ­
   Chesapeake Bay Foundation - Environment Maryland - Maryland League of Conservation
              Voters - Maryland Public Interest Research Group - Sierra Club




                                       Press Release
For Immediate Release
March 26, 2008

Contact: Johanna Neumann, 410-467-9389 or 410-318-9294 cell, Johanna@marylandpirg.org
Dawn Stoltzfus, 410-280-9855 or 410-562-5655 cell, dstoltzfus@mdlcv.org


          Senate Committee Votes to Lower Utility Bills
              and Ensure Future Energy Savings
  Conservation and Consumer Organizations Stress Need to Give Customers
            Real Energy Relief both Short-Term and Long-Term
Annapolis, MD--Today by a vote of 6 to 4 the Senate Finance Committee passed a major piece of energy
efficiency legislation introduced by the O'Malley Administration (SB 268) that provides millions of
dollars of direct ratepayer rebates to Marylanders and invests in energy efficiency measures to reduce
future energy costs and prevent predicted brown-outs.

Voting yes were: Senators Middleton, Astle, Exum, Garagiola, Klausmeier, Pugh
Voting no were: Senators Della, Kittleman, Pipkin, Glassman

"We commend the lawmakers who voted to help households across Maryland reduce their energy use,"
said Johanna Neumann, State Director for Maryland PIRG. "This legislation is a crucial step to helping
consumers lower their energy costs. This important bill should be approved by the General Assembly
without weakening amendments."

The Strategic Energy Investment Fund (SB 268) will give the Maryland Energy Administration the
resources to offer energy efficiency services to renters, low income households, and other customers that
conservation programs run by utilities are likely to miss. The fund will be financed through the upcoming
sale of carbon allowances to power plants as part of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI),
which Maryland joined as part of the 2006 Healthy Air Act.

The bill that passed out of the Senate Finance Committee today included a last-minute amendment from
Senator John Astle (District 30), supported by Maryland conservation and consumer groups, to split the
RGGI auction funds between bill credits and energy efficiency measures predicted to save consumers up
to $4 for every $1 invested by the state.

"Not only will ratepayers receive a credit on their bills now, they will save money for years to come as we
reduce our energy consumption," said Brad Heavner, State Director of Environment Maryland. "This is
the kind of real ratepayer relief that Marylanders are crying out for."

Yesterday Senator E.J. Pipkin submitted an amendment that would strip out all funding for energy
efficiency programs. This amendment was not part of the version of the bill that passed today.

(over)
Maryland League of Conservation Voters Executive Director Cindy Schwartz said: "Thank goodness the
finance committee threw out that short-sighted amendment. The bill now gives ratepayers some
immediate relief through credits while also investing in energy efficiency measures that will lower
Marylanders' energy bills for years and years to come. And this isn't just good for our wallets; it's also
good for the environment and the Chesapeake Bay to reduce global warming pollution."

Energy efficiency is the fastest and most affordable way to address rising electric rates and reliability
problems. According to recent BGE filings before the Maryland Public Service Commission, their
planned energy efficiency programs would cost 2-4 cents per kWh compared with 12-14 cents per kWh
on the wholesale electricity market.

"Energy efficiency will lower costs for consumers increasingly feeling the burden of higher utility rates,
gas prices and rising costs of consumer goods," said Neumann.

Before deregulation, Maryland invested as much as $100 million per year in energy efficiency programs,
which helped keep demand growth low. Two bills proposed by Governor O'Malley would jump-start
energy efficiency programs that have been dormant for almost a decade.

The EmPOWER Maryland Energy Efficiency Act (SB 205), which passed out of the Senate Finance
committee yesterday, establishes a statewide goal of reducing per-capita electricity use and peak demand
by 15 percent below 2007 levels over the next 7 years through a combination of utility and state-run
programs. The Maryland Public Service Commission estimates that achieving the 15 percent reductions
would lower average household bills $17 per month by 2015.

The full Senate and the House Economic Matters Committee are expected to take up the bills later this
week.



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Contacts

- Johanna Neumann, 410-318-9294, Johanna@marylandpirg.org
- Brad Heavner, Environment Maryland, bsh@environmentmaryland.org, 410-467-0439
- Cindy Schwartz, Maryland League of Conservation Voters, cschwartz@mdlcv.org, 240-535-6050
- Ed Osann, American Council for Energy-Efficient Economy, 301-535-4013
- Claire Douglas, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, claire@chesapeakeclimate.org, 240-396-1985
- Dave O'Leary, Sierra Club - Maryland Chapter, daveol@earthlink.net, 301-277-7111