On June 22, at the request of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the state Legislature stripped local communities of their historic home-rule rights.
In a secretive 24-hour blitz Article X was passed, now called Power New York Act. It applies to nuclear, gas, wind, coal and any other type of electrical generating plant of 25 megawatts or more. It was signed into law Aug. 4.
Siting generating plants and their transmission lines will now be done by a board of seven people, including five unelected bureaucrats from Albany.
They are the chairs of the Public Service Commission, the New York State Energy Research and Development Agency and economic development and the heads of the Department of Environmental Conservation and the Department of Health. These chairs may designate a person to represent themselves.
Two ad-hoc members are from the local community targeted by the developer. They have no vote and are not necessary for a quorum. They are selected by the state Senate and Assembly leaders from a list of names provided by the local officials. They are not allowed to be elected people.
According to the language of the Power New York Act, the chair of the board (who is also the chair of the PSC) makes the decisions “in consultation with the other chairs but exclusive of the ad-hoc members.”
The intervenor fund of money will also be controlled by the board. The board may ignore any and all local ordinances and laws.
The purpose of Article X is to guarantee developers that their project will be through the entire permitting process within one year.
Gov. Cuomo says Article X will give communities more say in the process of siting power plants. Doublespeak that rivals the ex-attorney general’s of ethics.
Sen. Patty Ritchie and Assembly members Addie Russell, Will Barclay and Ken Blankenbush all took a stand against Albany and stood for the counties and towns by voting against Article X.
Jefferson County swiftly and unanimously passed a resolution opposing Article X. Other counties and towns have also passed resolutions. I would like to thank them for understanding and supporting home rule.
If the only way to build new power plants requires stripping people and communities of their established rights, maybe it is time to rewrite our energy policies and this time leave the corporate lobbyists outside.
Martha Chase
Cape Vincent
4 comments:
Ms. Chase highlights a situation we should be very wary of - Cuomo ramrodding Article X guidelines down our throats before we even open our mouths.
Under the pretense of "getting things done" Cuomo has not had an open, democratic process that we New Yorkers expect.
We don't mind speed, we just like to see where we are going.
That is exactly the point. Cuomo and other obviously took "lobby"money from developers, who are only using our own tax dollars to pay off corrupt politicians. Called kick backs from subsidies. Not even their own money.This corruption has to be the main focus rather than allowing them to control the diatribe over their phony scientific "studies" and "mitigation". Litigation is the only way to stop these crooks, including Cuomo. Fraud is fraud, and this goes every inch of the way denying citizens their rights and giving more rights to foreign invaders. This all started with NAFTA and GATT, and evolved into Americans having no sovereign rule. Only those who sold out. At least in one small town some have learned that selling out doesn't always get them re-elected. Cuomo will have to use a lot of that money he took just to get re-elected. In how many other scams is he involved. Most likely BOA and home foreclosures as well.
Litigation is the only way to stop these crooks, including Cuomo.
Litigation almost never works, they only understand large numbers of citizens protesting in front of their offices...they don't like the press.
Most of the bureaucrats are lawyers and will keep you tied up in courst at enormous expense.
Losing votes is what they understand and bad press gets their attention.
I agree, but I don't see the Republican party taking to the streets in protest. Wouldn't that be ironic. It's ironic enough that Republicans are even talking about noise pollution, property values, environmental concerns including dead birds and bats. The "rule of law" only applies to people who control it. Ask Justice Scalia. Ask Cuomo himself.I agree that direct confrontaion is the only real power people have, but after 9/11, your dear friend and hero GWB made it a terrorist act to even attempt to change government policies. However, real protests recently have caused some concern with banks such as BOA concerning foreclosures. In Falmouth , Ma. protesters managed to shut BOA's doors early because the bank manager refused to accept a letter of prostest. If you want to go that route, the Republican party will have a hell of a time changing its stripes.It's funny watching the same obstructionists in a predicament actually caused by their own politics. Well, more than one, but the other is just the same old Ponzi. So is windpower. Just another Ponzi. It'll run its course , and the hypocrites can go back to business as usual. Also, I don't care for either party, I think they all work together to defraud the American Taxpayer.
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