Many of you have heard the expression that goes, “She got the gold mine, I got the shaft.” Hold on because here it comes again, and it’s our own government doing it this time.
I must state that I am for energy conservation as it not only makes sense, if also saves us money that we desperately need to survive with the high prices of oil, natural gas, propane and gasoline that we are paying today. My wife and I paid a local business to install extra insulation in our attic and it was money well spent.
I do have a problem, though, when energy conservation costs us money under the disguise of saving us money when, in fact, it won’t save us a dime. Confusing, please allow me to explain because this is our state government doing this to us with another piece of legislation.
A state senator near Windham is proposing a piece of legislation to have schools and municipalities have a program for energy conservation. It does make sense, doesn’t it? Nope, nein, nay, het, or ninguna. To begin with, one must realize that we already have an approximate charge of $10 a month for energy savings. Now, to pay for this, there is a proposal to add another one-and-a-half-cent per kilowatt hour onto our electric bills. For me that’s about $10 to $12 a month.
If the purpose of that program is to save energy, shouldn’t it save us money, too? Do you really believe that if the towns and schools save money we, as taxpayers, will see our property tax bills decreased in any way? One member of an SAD has already said something to the effect of, “here comes more free money.” Like that do you? Sure sets my blood boiling.
Now the state wants high speed Internet access for all. Doesn’t it seem obvious why some regions of Maine don’t have that access? There are remote regions in Maine that don’t have the population necessary for a business to thrive. Would you move to the Allagash to sell lawn furniture? I must state that I am positive the vast majority of Mainers can receive satellite Internet service. If that was the only alternative, then I would purchase it.
So, I say, let’s cut to the chase here. Let’s make schools and towns energy efficient by forcing them within their existing budgets. Let’s help businesses in Maine thrive by not allowing government to duplicate services that are already provided by the private sector. A prime example is someone who wants their town to provide karate lessons for the child. Someone in Windham already has a business that provides such a service. So go there and pay for it yourself.
“Educate and inform the whole mass of the people. They are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty.” – Thomas Jefferson
Send questions/comments to the editors.
