Dear Chair Watts, Vice Chair Max Carter and Committee Members
On behalf of the Nevada Rural Electric Association (NREA) we write in strong support of Assembly Bill 529. The NREA thanks the Committee, under Chair Watt’s leadership, for bringing forward this important legislation. AB529, also known as the Station Power Bill, will strengthen public power utilities’ ability to continue to provide affordable, reliable, and resilient energy to Nevadans across the Great State.
The NREA represents public power entities that include one municipal utility, six rural electric cooperatives, and three power districts. These are consumer-owned utilities that have democratically elected boards who work and live in the jurisdictions they serve. Collectively, they power rural communities from the Northern region of the State to the Southern, and from the East to the West serving 127,000 Nevadans. While this number might be a small percent of the State’s population, NREA members deliver power to tribal reservations, military bases, local ranches and large agricultural farms, mining operations, and hundreds of small businesses. Consequently, Nevada’s rural utilities play a critical role in Nevada’s economy and America’s supply chain that feeds us, technology that relies on mining, and our national security.
The NREA applauds Nevada’s leadership in renewable energy and NREA members are proud to be a part of leading the way in clean energy solutions such as solar and wind. Two of NREA’s members were awarded PACE grants under the IRA to build solar projects in their territories, the majority of NREA members use hydropower – which continues to be one of the cleanest and most affordable power sources – and NREA members have partnered with solar and wind farms to power those projects. NREA members are innovative and proud to be a leader in clean energy when it supports their ability to deliver affordable, reliable, and safe power to their constituents.
Across the country and in Nevada, there is a growing concern that out-of-state investor-owned corporations are using public land that they do not pay property taxes on, eating up abatements and tax credits for their projects, and then selling energy abroad for a profit. In doing so, they neglect local communities in which they benefit from. The Station Power Bill strengthens ties between these big out-of-state corporations by ensuring that Nevada’s rural electric utilities – owned and operated by Nevadans – have a seat at the table to negotiate fair and sustainable projects. Thank you for your consideration and please contact me anytime.
Sincerely,
Lisa Levine
Executive Director
Nevada Rural Electric Association