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May 9, 2016 By Tom Sherman

Ohio Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Businesses Lobby To Block Freeze Extension

May 4, 2016

As some of you know, I have the privilege of serving as a member of Ohio Advanced Energy Economy (OAEE). We’re a coalition of businesses who advocate for the energy efficiency and renewable energy industries. We come together with a common voice when urgent issues arise in the state legislature or US Congress that affect our industry, and April 2016 has given us our most important task in the past two years.

New legislation was introduced last week by Senator Bill Seitz (R-suburban Cincinnati): a bill that would extend the freeze that took away the energy efficiency and renewable energy mandates in Ohio in 2014. The current freeze, a result of Senate Bill 310, is due to expire on December 31st. We in the energy efficiency business have been looking forward to the lifting of the freeze like Ohioans look forward to the end of winter: SB310 has resulted in a sharp drop-off in new investment in the Ohio clean energy economy for the past two years.  Now, Senator Seitz, who brought SB310 to the floor in 2013, is attempting to further delay the return of the mandates for another 3 years, furthering the bleak investment outlook for Ohio.

My fellow business leaders at OAEE and I support the mandates, and we want them to return.

When the mandates became law in 2009, they required our four Ohio investor owned utilities—AEP, First Energy, DP&L and Duke–to meet specific goals in energy efficiency and renewable energy. One way they accomplished this was by offering rebates to customers who reduced their electricity consumption through efficiency projects. This was important because the demand on our electric grid grows roughly 3% on average each year, and the mandates were intended to offset this growth so we wouldn’t have to build new base load power plants that rely on coal and nuclear fuel. We could instead move forward in a more responsible way by integrating cleaner energy sources and renewable energy technologies into our fuel mix, and we would be saving on carbon emissions at the same time.

SB310 changed all that by suspending the mandates, and Senator Seitz’s new bill–SB320–would take us further down the unsustainable path we find ourselves on today. Ohio energy consumers will have to wait years before we have even a chance of seeing the restart of our state’s clean energy industry.

Last week, we had the opportunity to speak with Azim Haque, Commissioner of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) and Craig Butler, Director of the Ohio EPA in Columbus to advocate against extending the freeze. Our meetings were encouraging: Commissioner Haque and Mr. Butler were open to discussing a realistic path forward toward a cleaner energy economy and a more competitive market for our state.

It’s the beginning of what we hope will be a fruitful conversation about a path to clean energy without extending a counterproductive freeze, but it’s far from over. We could very well have another 3 years of winter if Ohio energy consumers who support renewables and energy efficiency aren’t heard.  Senate Bill 320 affects all of us, and opposing it is important.  Please consider reaching out to your senator and representative and tell them what you think. You can find the right person to contact here https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/

Filed Under: Blog

What Our Clients Are Saying

“It has been a pleasure working with Laura and Tom Sherman and Sustainable Energy Services over the past three years on our energy procurement.  They have saved our company many thousands of dollars on our energy spend year over year and I have appreciated the regular and timely insights on our electric and gas accounts. Tom completed an energy audit of our facility and uncovered many opportunities to reduce energy consumption.  He also made us aware of a tariff opportunity that will save us … Read more
Wayne Pedlar, Chromaflo Technologies
Tom did a complete audit of our facility and then mapped out a strategy that we have followed for the last 4 years.  To date we have saved 47%.  We were so delighted with our results, we asked him to help us with our 3 other plants.  Tom is very professional and a joy to work with.  I would not hesitate to recommend Tom and his firm if you are looking for a high integrity expert who gets results.  
Jeff Weekley, CFO, Mantua Mfg. Co.
Tom did a complete facility energy audit, which got us started on reducing our energy consumption. From his report, we were able to improve our lighting, replaced our old boilers with infrared heat and tackled our compressed air system.  Since 2010, these and other projects help us achieve a 41% reduction in natural gas usage and an 18% reduction in our electricity usage.  Tom has always been available for special projects or advice whenever we needed it.   It has been a pleasure to work with… Read more
Chris Schwartz, President, G&S Metal
Sustainable Energy Services performed a complete facility energy audit, showing us how we could save 30+% on our energy usage.  From the final report it was clear we needed to move first on upgrading our lighting. Looking at the math, it was a no-brainer. Based on the unbiased financial analysis provided in the report, we saw a clear way to upgrade to all LED lighting with less than a 2 year payback so we implemented it.  SES also helped us with utility rebates, get competitive bids and secure… Read more
Terry Schordock, Property & Systems Director, Bay Presbyterian Church
In today’s retail environment, margins tend to be diminishing all over the place; retailers need to get creative in order to stop the bleeding, find ways to increase sales, and move the needle on the trend to stay alive and relevant.  One expense area that I noticed was significant was our electric bill, and I decided to delve into how to potentially reduce it.  After researching solar alternatives, it was suggested to me that I first conduct an overall energy audit to identify where and how o… Read more
Charlie Bassett, CEO, Bassett's IGA

News and Updates

SES is proud to announce that our CEO, Laura Sherman, graduated Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program.

Laura was among 26 small-business leaders from across Northeast Ohio an beyond who completed the … [Read More...]

We are excited to be invited speakers at the AEE East and West Energy Conferences, which are combined this year and will be virtual. Tom will present on Electric motors and VFDs.

… [Read More...]

Tom is honored to be selected as a speaker at the AEE 2020 World Energy Conference, December 1-4, 2020. His topic this year is Compressed Air System Best Practices: How to Conduct an Audit for Optimal Performance.

… [Read More...]

Tom is honored again to be selected as a speaker at the 2020 AEE East Energy Conference in Cincinnati, OH, April 21 & 22

The 2020 AEE East Energy Conference will be held at the Duke Energy Convention Center, Cincinnati, … [Read More...]

Tom will be presenting Motors & VFDs at OTCOs 58th Annual Water Workshop in Columbus March 10 and 11, 2020

Tom will be presenting on Motors and VFDs: How They Work and When They Don't at the Operator … [Read More...]

Tom is presenting “Compressed Air Auditing: Going Deeper for Better Results,” at the AEE World Energy Conference

Compressed air audits often miss areas that would further reduce energy consumption, more accurately … [Read More...]

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