VBSR Testimony –Senate Finance re: S.350
Tuesday March 11, 2008  
Melinda Moulton, Main Street Landing & Chair, VBSR ETE Committee &
Andrea Cohen, Public Policy Coordinator, VBSR

VBSR is a non-profit statewide business association with approximately 550 members.  These members employ approximately 10-12% of the state’s workforce and contribute approximately 4 billion dollars annually to the state’s economy.
VBSR has longstanding energy and transportation policy that emphasizes the economic benefit to be derived from conservation, efficiency and the development and use of renewable energy sources.  Benefits include cost savings for our businesses and our employees, job creation, and increased energy independence. Last summer VBSR convened a special energy and transportation committee and developed a priority list of energy legislative action for 2008 that we determined would be effective and feasible (please see attached).

While some of our priority action items were addressed in recently passed legislation (S.209), S. 350 picks up other priority actions in the following sections we support, including:

Sections 7 through 10 regarding transportation:
•    Transportation planning and development to promote conservation and efficiency, to reduce vehicular miles traveled, and to increase public transportation ridership.
•    Goals to increase passenger rail by 100% by 2018 and by 200% by 2028
•    Goals to increase use of rail freight within the state by 50% by 2018 and by 100% by 2028
•    Maintaining and improving intercity bus and rail and freight and commuter rail services, and the necessary intermodal connections
•    Planning to accommodate increased ridership with city to city and commuter rail service.
•    AOT plan to coordinate rideshare, public transit, park and ride, interstate, and bicycle and pedestrian planning, and to maximize interregional ridesharing and access to public transit.
•    Improving existing access and road surface conditions for bicycles and pedestrians along highway shoulders

Provisions in Section 1 regarding installation of solar energy equipment on state buildings.

Provisions in Section 13 regarding municipal zoning incentives for “Green Buildings”

Provisions in Section 19 to expand RGGI to include emissions associated with transportation, space heating and industrial processes.

Provisions in Section 21 regarding State Treasurer Investment in green businesses, and

Provisions in Section 22 regarding appraisal value of energy measures.

In sum, Vermont businesses need reliable energy service and predictable energy prices.  We will achieve this by moving away from polluting and unsustainable energy sources and investing now in cleaner, safer, and renewable energy and in energy conservation.
This may require financial investment of the public sector-- government is an important partner in ensuring a sustainable energy future for our businesses.  These public sector investments will stimulate the creation of good paying jobs and the development of “green” business clusters.

We hope as you move ahead you will be willing to explore innovative funding options that will result in incentives to conserve energy and develop renewable energy.  (e.g carbon taxes, feed-in-tariffs).   We truly appreciate your willingness to explore better solutions and your understanding that forward thinking energy policy is critical to economic prosperity in Vermont.