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The Buffalo Niagara Partnership believes it is critical that the Legislature adopt a new energy program for economic development in the 2010 session. Specifically, we support a program that redeploys Rural and Domestic power for economic development purposes.

Given that the current Power for Jobs program expires May 15 – a program that approximately 70 employers in Erie and Niagara rely upon --the time is now for legislative action.

We believe this program should be built on the following key principles:

-         A permanent replacement program for the Power for Jobs and Economic Development Power programs which provides predictability and certainty for program participants. Currently, yearly extenders of an imperfect program don’t allow local companies to make long-term investment decisions.

-         Allocation-based power benefits and long-term contracts (5 to 10 year duration) which provide competitive, stable electric power prices to energy intensive businesses.

-         Eligibility criteria which include factors that assure significant, long-term economic return to the state, including the number and value (wages and benefits) of jobs created and retained, investments in capital equipment and energy efficiency, the significance of energy costs to a business’ competitiveness, and the local economic significance of the facility.

There are three main proposals on the table: the Governor’s Program Bill; S.7573 co-sponsored by Senator Aubertine and Senator Maziarz, which passed the Senate last week with broad, bipartisan support; and A.10053, sponsored by Assemblyman Cahill.

While these bills share key principles discussed above, we strongly support the approach taken in the Administration’s bill and S.7573, both of which provide a well defined, fully developed 910 MW energy benefit program beginning with its first year of implementation. We urge the Western New York Assembly delegation to support negotiations that lead to an Assembly program that is closer to these proposals.

In some circles locally, this issue has taken the tone of “don’t steal our power.” We believe that is an inaccurate way to frame what would be a program that can benefit our community. Nonetheless, while practical political considerations make a statewide economic development power program more likely for passage, the Western New York Assembly delegation should work hard to ensure that program criteria favors Upstate businesses. In addition, we would also encourage serious consideration of A.8712, sponsored by Assemblyman Gabryszak, for inclusion in this comprehensive energy bill.

Our region needs access to more low cost hydropower in order to retain and attract businesses that will employ more people in our region. Currently, our sister organization the Buffalo Niagara Enterprise, has nine active projects –  good projects, with real interest in our region, that come from the renewable energy industry, other advanced manufacturing sectors and that include brownfield cleanups and strong job creation as part of their plans.  Together these projects represent potential private sector investments of up to $4.7 billion here, and creation of nearly 5,500 new jobs.  To land these projects, we (as a region) currently have less than 40 MW of Expansion and Replacement power available, while the projects would likely require total allocations closer to 200 MW. A new state program with 910 mw that our region can access would be a critical step toward landing one or more of these companies.

We urge you to support Assembly efforts to create a program that is similar to the Governor’s Program Bill and S.7573 co-sponsored by Senator Aubertine and Senator Maziarz, and that includes considerations that ensure the program benefit Upstate and Western New York.