Yesterday was (supposed) to be a big day for energy bills in the Senate but many of the bills were “passed by” for the day, which means they have been postponed until next week’s committee hearing. However, one of CCAN’s priority bills, SB 814, which would have stopped the potential for offshore drilling in its tracts, died a valiant death. This was no surprise to us; the purpose of the bill this year was to educate our legislators on the threat of offshore drilling. While not immediate, this threat is still very real. Suffice it to say, we accomplished our goal big time. There was a tremendous, healthy debate centered around our bill that lasted more than 20 minutes whereas most of the other bills in committee were quickly discussed and voted upon. I was able to point out to the committee members that drilling can and will most likely begin after 2017 when the federal government revisits opening our coast to offshore drilling. We must continue to keep the pressure on our state and federal legislators about this threat.

Today though, we are reversing gears a little bit by working hard to promote our renewable energy bill that is on today’s committee docket. This bill would establish a voluntary solar fund for Virginia homeowners to apply for. By all early indications, this bill has a good shot today. Stay tuned for details!