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NC Chamber Commends General Assembly for Fighting to Keep Energy Costs Competitive in NC with Decisive Action on Coal Ash Guidelines

Yesterday, members of both the House and Senate passed Senate Bill 71 (Comm’n Appointment Modifications) with strong bipartisan support from both chambers. If passed into law, the bill would reconstitute the Coal Ash Management Commission created by the Coal Ash Management Act of 2014, reestablishing and further clarifying guidelines for the disposal of coal ash at sites operated by Duke Energy in North Carolina. The NC Chamber had previously sent this letter to legislative leadership asking them to take action before the end of the current legislative session to reenact established procedures for coal ash disposal. We applaud both the House and Senate for their quick and decisive action on this issue.

Affordable energy prices for job creators and consumers are essential in order to ensure North Carolina remains competitive in attracting new job creation. The letter mentioned above came in response to a recent regulatory proposal which would have interrupted the progress already made toward coal ash disposal at sites across the state, resulting in the most expensive outcome possible for all utility customers in North Carolina and sending a message that predictability within the state’s regulatory climate had suffered an unfortunate setback.

Fortunately, the passage of Senate Bill 71 sends a different type of message, one that makes abundantly clear that North Carolina’s leaders are focused on providing more predictability for the regulated community of our state, allowing consumers to enjoy more affordable energy prices and freeing up job creators to focus on growing more jobs for North Carolinians. We will continue to keep you updated on this important legislation as it advances.

Gary J. Salamido
Vice President, Government Affairs
North Carolina Chamber