Energy Bill Sputters in Senate; Renewable Power Stalls for Another Year?

New year, same result: Word is that the Senate energy bill is doomed.

In yet another year of high expectations and dashed hopes, SB 2078, along with various amendments, was temporarily postponed by the Budget Committee. That "TP" appears to be a death knell.

As with similar bills in previous sessions, SB 2078 would have granted incentives to the state's large investor-owned utilities to fund solar projects. But a coalition of consumer groups and smaller energy providers fought the bill, saying it gave preferential treatment to big utilities such as Florida Power & Light.

A late amendment by Sen. Thad Altman, R-Melbourne, to require that 20 percent of the total developed renewable energy come in the form of purchased power was heard Tuesday morning. But neither Altman's amendment nor the bill itself advanced.

"There is no winner this year," concluded Mike Anthiel, head of the Florida Alliance for Renewable Energy. "A win would have been if FPL decided that they didn't need every last penny for themselves and allowed a small portion of the market to be opened for competition."