The California Department of Finance has released some startling
statistics.
EDITOR:
The California Department of Finance has released some startling statistics. Last year, our state added almost 600,000 new residents. As columnist Dan Walters pointed out, if the California population growth continues as demographers expect, we should reach 36 million by 2010, 46 million by 2020, and 50 million somewhere between 2025 and 2030. The burden is on the state Legislature to create appropriate infrastructure throughout California in order to meet the growing needs of our residents, including the building of new homes.
However, rather than planning responsibly for the future, California’s Legislature is continuing a trend toward self-destruction. For example, last year California experienced a sharp drop in revenue as numerous businesses fled the state to find friendlier economic climates. This year, the anti-business legislation continues, but business owners are no longer alone in being punished by the Legislature. Apparently, new homebuyers join their ranks as the Democrats’ new target.
A Democratic state Senator has introduced a bill that would require new single-family residences to be constructed with their own personal power plants. Each home would be required to feature a solar energy system that generates enough electricity to produce half of the residence’s required energy. Any homebuyer or builder in violation would be guilty of a misdemeanor. The expected cost to the average new homebuyer would be $18,000 on top of the purchase price, closing costs, and other fees that have driven up home prices in areas beyond what the average person can afford.
There are myriad problems with the foundation on which this proposed legislation is based. First, it is a poor replacement for building a power plant in California. It would take 25,000 houses with mandated solar energy to generate the cost equivalent of one power plant. Thus, homebuyers will be forced to pay $450 million to generate just 50 percent of their energy. In contrast, one power plant can provide all the electricity for 1 million homes and costs about $500 million to construct.
Second, by its nature, solar power is powered by solar energy. Hence, what are people supposed to do if it rains or if the weather otherwise prevents California’s famous sun from shining through? Not only is it prohibitively expensive to require people to pay for and house their own personal power plants, it is, at best, moderately effective depending on whether there is an adequate amount of sunshine on any given day.
Third, this bill would create yet another unfunded state-mandated local program. Currently, the cities and counties in California are struggling to make ends meet. Many are being forced by the economic situation at the state level to cut valuable services and programs to their constituents. In addition, in order to balance the budget, Gov. Davis has proposed moving several programs from the state to the local level, which will result in additional costs to local government.
The last thing that our cities and counties need is yet another unfunded mandate to strain their respective budgets, particularly when it has such a negative impact on California’s residents.
Fourth, this bill mandates the use of a specific technology about which the Legislature has no expertise. Generally, the Legislature prefers to depend on the judgment of experts when it comes to highly technical issues associated with building or energy efficient standards. Writing building standards in statute can make it difficult to make necessary adjustments. In addition, the Energy Commission has generally set energy reduction performance standards that provide flexibility in how they are met. This bill would undo that flexibility by mandating solar power usage.
Although the idea of energy reduction is attractive and critical to the state’s well-being, this measure has several inherent flaws that will prevent it from being effective, or even useful, as an energy reduction, cost-saving measure. In fact, mandated solar heating is inefficient and ineffective, and will drive up the cost of homes in California. The Legislature must work toward reversing the trend of negative, targeted legislation that commenced with Governor Davis’ election.
The anti-business climate in California is certainly not conducive to attracting new businesses, or keeping the ones that have remained, and a policy that favors inadequate environmental measures over the rights of homeowners throughout the state will not be well received. One thing is certain – California certainly cannot afford to alienate anyone else.
Dick Ackerman,
33rd District state Senator
