When it comes to the generation of power, Nebraska does a lot of things right. Nebraska ranks as the number one state in the nation for residential electricity reliability, and Nebraska ranks as the fifth best state in the Union for the overall cost of electricity. Electrical utilities in Nebraska are completely owned by the public; there are no privately owned power companies in Nebraska. Nebraska has been a leader in power generation ever since the State Legislature passed its first public power bill back in 1933, but recent developments in wind energy have created new threats and a new need for legislation.

In case you haven’t noticed, wind farms are popping up all across the State. Many folks believe that these wind turbines are destroying the beautiful landscape of Nebraska, especially when they pop up in their own neck of the woods, and they wished they had an opportunity to voice their opinions and concerns about them. For example, folks living near the Nebraska-Colorado border just south of Sidney recently had to witness the collapse of a wind turbine along with an ensuing fire. In addition, these same residents have to daily behold the ugly sight of an enormous and ever-growing pile of used and discarded blades from dismantled wind turbines.

The language of our current state statutes is also threatening the public’s control of our state’s wind farms. Current state law allows private developers operating intermittent generators to sell their electricity to companies in other states in competition with Nebraska’s public power companies. This practice undermines the intent of the Legislature to keep Nebraska as a 100 percent public power state. In order to protect the public nature of our state’s power industry new legislation is needed, and that is what LB 399 is designed to do.

LB 399 is a bill introduced by Sen. Tom Brewer of Gordon, which addresses these two problems. The bill currently sits on General File and will likely get debated on the floor of the Legislature early this week. Sen. Brewer has worked on this bill for the past seven years and is anxious to pass it before the end of his tenure in the Nebraska Legislature at the end of this year.

First, LB 399 fixes the people problem. Current state law requires a renewable energy developer to hold a public meeting with the County Board of Commissioners when applying for a conditional permit for the installation of a wind turbine, but members of the public are never permitted to speak at the public hearing or to interact with the developer. Sen. Brewer’s bill, on the other hand, would require that public notice of the meeting be posted in advance of the hearing and that members of the public would be invited to speak at the hearing and to interact with the developer.

Second, Sen. Brewer’s bill fixes the public power problem. Sen. Brewer’s bill transfers authority for privately owned wind generation projects over to the Nebraska Power and Review Board. Because we have 100 percent public power, Nebraska is the only state in the country with a Power and Review Board, instead of a regulatory power commission. Sen. Brewer’s bill would keep electricity in Nebraska. According to the bill, the Power and Review Board would not be able to grant a permit to a private developer until a power purchase agreement has been made with a Nebraska Public Power utility company. This step is important for preventing the sale of power to companies outside the state of Nebraska.

LB 399 is an important bill for protecting Nebraska public power. The people should always have a voice before a wind farm goes up and no private renewable energy developer should ever be able to undermine the system by selling our electricity to companies out-of-state. For these reasons, I co-signed LB 399 and will continue to support it for the good of all Nebraskans.