As predicted, the Senate Commerce Committee passed the CWIP bill.
Two committee members offered amendments. The version offered by Senator John Griesheimer, R-Washington, would have simplified the bill from 24 pages to one page, but the bottom line was the same: it would have repealed the CWIP legislation the people passed by 63 percent in 1976. That was a no go. The version that was passed was written by Senator Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, who actually made a few substantive changes.
The new bill, written by Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, gives the Public Service Commission more time to decide on whether or not to approve a new nuclear plant. The original bill allowed three months for the process - the new bill makes it 12 months for initial approval and another 11 months for the facility review process.
The new bill also requires the utility to obtain the necessary permits before applying for the facility review.
The bill has been "fixed". Sort of. Like a slovenly woman who has painted one fingernail to dress herself up.
This bill still has a runner in its stockings, a slip with torn lace peeking beneath the skirt, mismatched shoes, smeared lipstick, frizzy hair, and too much mascara. For instance:
On the CWIP front, we may be about to lose a battle, but we'd have to be a sorry bunch of incompetents to lose the war. And we're not that.
The imminent battle is the vote on Monday of the Senate Commerce Committee. A month ago, the committee looked set to vote down Ameren's money grab. Committee chairman Brad Lager, R-Savannah, said at the public hearing: "As is, I couldn't even get this bill out of committee, much less out of the Senate." A week later, I was part of a small group that lobbied Senator Tom Dempsey, R-St. Peters, to vote against the bill. He didn't commit himself personally, but he did observe that the bill was unlikely to make it out of committee.
Part of the reason it was floundering there was opposition from Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia. As he questioned Ameren CEO, Tom Voss, and his colleague, Tom Burns [on the left], the freshman senator catalogued all "the serious flaws of this bill as it pertains to consumer protection".
Schaefer concluded by expressing a hope that the bill could be fixed so that the Senate could work with Ameren toward getting this project underway. I don't know whether he will say that he got his wish. The bill has been "fixed". Sort of. Like a slovenly woman who has painted one fingernail to dress herself up. It is still 97 percent unsightly, but Senate Majority Floor Leader Charlie Shields, R-St. Joseph, apparently relishes slovenly women. He wants this bill passed.
