If You’re A Senior Like Me, Then It’s No On 3!
July 14, 2018 by Las Vegas Black Image Magazine
Filed under Highlights
BY LOUIE OVERSTREET
Louie Overstreet
My opposition is based on two factors: 1) It doesn’t rise to the level of amending the Nevada Constitution; and 2) it will very likely cause rate increases.
The latter is the last thing we need in Nevada, given the cost to cool homes and businesses in the summer. Ballot Question 3, if approved, would dismantle Nevada’s existing electricity system — one of the most reliable and affordable in the nation — and replace it with a new, unknown system established by the legislature and the courts.
The negative impacts on residents and businesses could include billions in increased taxes, the loss of thousands of good-paying jobs, and possible disruption of Nevada’s progress toward a renewable energy future. It would also eliminate consumer protections that help keep a lid on Nevada’s electricity rates.
In the late 1990s, many states, including Nevada, tried to implement laws like Question 3. California’s attempt in early 2000s led to skyrocketing rates, rolling blackouts, and more than $40 billion in added costs for taxpayers.
Of the 24 states that originally attempted a proposition like Question 3, only 14 states still have deregulated electricity systems in place. In those states, the average residential electric rates are 30% higher than Nevada’s — and California’s overall rates are nearly double ours.
If passed, the state’s major provider, NV Energy, would be forced to sell its power plants and cancel long-term energy agreements, many of which are for renewable energy projects being built right here in Nevada. Those costs would be in the billions — and guess who it will be passed on to pay the bill? In fact, a recent independent investigation conducted by the Public Utilities Commission found that Question 3 would likely increase average residential electric bills for Nevadans for at least a decade.
Check it out for yourself. But for me, I want reliable “power to the people” at affordable rates. As such, I am pulling the plug on Question 3 by voting no.
