Petition for Public Power feasibility study presented to PRC by Senator Carrie Hamblen today

Today at the PRC Senator Carrie Hamblen and Mariel, on behalf of the sixteen legislators who petitioned for a study of Public Power, presented to the Commissioners why the petition was made, the urgency of getting answers now, and the reason that the Commission is best suited to oversee an unbiased study of the potential and costs of Public Power ownership in New Mexico.

The Commissioners agreed that Public Power ownership is worth studying and that the PRC is uniquely qualified to oversee such a study, but a decision was made to wait for one or two weeks to give a definitive answer until options for orders were drafted and further investigation could be conducted into the statutory authority to produce similar studies that was relied on by other states. We are hopeful they will undertake this endeavor.

With the inevitable and rapid changes in energy markets taking place within this decade, and the exponential growth in electricity consumption expected in the west, particularly California, as electrification of home heating, transportation and other sectors is mandated, this is the moment to ensure that the people of New Mexico are positioned to not only make the transition to 100% renewable energy now, but to reap the benefits of the solar and wind energy that we can produce and export across the west.