STATEMENT RELEASE: MILLS ON SENATE BILL 4 ENACTMENT WITHOUT BESHEAR’S SIGNATURE
FRANKFORT, KY (March 27, 2023) — The following is a statement from Senator Robby Mills, R-Henderson, following the enactment of Senate Bill 4 without the Governor’s support:
Senate Bill 4 is a huge victory for citizens of our Commonwealth who have been hit hard by losing power in their homes and businesses for extended periods of time during storm events and natural disasters. This bill is designed to prevent the premature retirement of coal-fired power generating plants that have abundant supplies of coal on-site to provide the power when we need it rather than rely upon other inherently unreliable so-called “green” energy sources that the Biden administration works so hard to impose upon us. The bill also bolsters the coal industry and the coal miners who work so hard every day to keep our lights on.
It is illuminating that Governor Beshear has chosen not to sign this bill that so clearly benefits every person and business in Kentucky. Rather, in an election year the Governor has chosen the politically expedient middle ground. By not signing Senate Bill 4, Governor Beshear avoids alienating his “green-at-all-cost” friends in the Biden administration. By not vetoing the bill, he attempts to show nominal support for the bill in a disingenuous effort to avoid the political wrath of good people of Kentucky on election day. But the citizens of the Commonwealth should not be fooled by the Governor’s refusal to demonstrate solidarity with and support for the people of Kentucky by refusing the sign this important bill that is designed to protect us all from power outages and bolster our power grid.
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Senate Bill 4 strengthens electric grid reliability in the Commonwealth and diminishes the chances that Kentucky’s residents will face dangerous and sometimes deadly consequences of power outages commonly referred to as “brown-outs,” or “black-outs” as a result of the premature retirement of coal-fired power generating plantsThe bill would prohibit the Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC) from authorizing the retirement of a fossil-fuel-fired electric power generating unit unless the utility can demonstrate that:
The utility will replace the retired unit with a new electric generating capacity that is dispatchable; maintains or improves the reliability and resilience of the electric transmission grid; and maintains the adequate minimum reserve capacity;
The retirement of the unit will not harm the utility’s ratepayers by causing the utility to incur costs to be recovered from the ratepayers that could be avoided by continuing to operate the unit.
The decision to retire the unit is not the result of any financial incentives or benefits offered by any federal agency.
Additional bill provisions would require the PSC to submit an annual report by December 1 to the Legislative Research Commission on the retirement of electric generating units.
Senate Bill 4 carries an emergency designation, which means it became effective state law today upon filing with the Kentucky Secretary of State’s Office.
Click here to access Senate Bill 4 and learn more about Senator Robby Mills.
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Senator Robby Mills, R-Henderson, represents the 4th Senate District, including Henderson, Hopkins, Union, and Webster Counties. He serves as Senate State and Local Government Committee chair and is a Senate Economic Development, Tourism and Labor; Natural Resources; and Energy and Transportation committee member. Additionally, he is a Public Pension Oversight Board member and a member of the Budget Review Subcommittee on General Government, Finance and Public Protection.