Welcome To Connecticut The Third World State-Part 3

Now that most of the power in Connecticut has been restored the blame game is in full swing here in our Third World State.  We now see our elected officials who have received a great deal of money in campaign contributions from Eversource Energy condemn them now for their response to the power outages due to the Tropical Storm.  We now see how ineffective and inept Connecticut's Public Utility Regulatory Authority (PURA) is during a crisis.  It kinds of reminds me how ineffective and inept Connecticut's Department of Public Health is during the Covid-19 crisis.  In this case Connecticut's Public Utility Regulatory Authority (PURA) is a vast governmental bureaucracy created to help employ five commissioners who are paid an incredible sum of money for supposedly regulating and over seeing the legal monopolies here in the state.  They somehow try to help you understand why Connecticut has some of the highest electric rates in the country with some of the worse service to go along with those high rates.  The money that is spent by this agency especially with now five commissioners due to the 2019 House Bill 7424 instead of three who earn combined well over $750,000 in salaries and benefits is economically irrational given Connecticut's economic crisis and high unemployment.  They have failed miserably in this crisis.  Three Commissioners can not solve PURA's issues why did Ned Lamont believe five would?  I forgot two more state political jobs can be paid for by Connecticut Taxpayers. 

High electric rates and poor service can be traced to several factors.  Eversource Energy top five management people earn over $40 million dollars.  One can argue that and rightly so that customers help pay for those salaries.  If one looks at 2018 Senate Bill 9 it shows why electric rates will skyrocket in the future due to the mandate to change over to renewable power over the next several years.  Ned Lamont argued on Twitter on July 30th that only 4% of the rate increase was due to the mandate even though it was accepted fully by PURA.  He suggested that Eversource Energy electric customers turn down their air conditioners and save energy.  

Massive campaign contributions flow into both state parties from Eversource Energy.  It is logical to assume that those contributions help to let our elected leaders overlook the constant shortcomings of Eversource Energy and its customers from high electric rates to poor service during a storm.  It is also logical to assume that PURA and its Commissioners just rubber stamp what these same elected leaders want them to do as we have just seen with these rate hikes.  Thus it is a no win solution for both Connecticut Eversource Energy customers and Connecticut Taxpayers.  They pay for poor service through both their high electric rates and high taxes.

The solution to this problem is the following.  First disband PURA and its commissioners.  The overseeing of utility monopolies in the state should be done by a non political independent agency.  Secondly, eliminate all utility lobbyist and campaign contributions by these same utilities in the state.  This has influenced bad decisions by our elected officials to reach the Third World State point that we are in today in Connecticut not just with monopoly electric companies but also with telephone, cell and cable TV and internet companies.  Change is needed if we are ever going to regain our state economy and not have businesses and household spend the bulk of their monies on excessively high taxes coupled with excessively high utility rates.  Enough is enough.