Dear Bird Supper attendees,

Two things could greatly help south Georgia:
better Internet access and solar power.
You could help stop two telecommunications bills
and help pass two energy bills for jobs and education
in south Georgia.

Internet Access: help stop two telecommunications bills

The local Industrial Authority, Chamber of Commerce, Valdosta City Council,
and Lowndes County Commission have recently realized that
fast Internet access is essential to attract businesses,
for their employees to work at home, for applicants to apply for jobs,
for students to submit assignments, and for general quality of life.

• 
  HB 282 against muni broadband
  
  This bill would prohibit local governments from providing Internet access
  if any local census block has 1.5Mbps access.
  Localities may or may not want to do it themselves, but they shouldn't
  be prohibited from using this option now that it is obvious to everyone
  that the commercial incumbents are not doing the job.
  Legislators please vote this bill down.

• 
  HB 176 for higher cell towers with less local government oversight
  
  This really bad bill would let cell telephone companies build towers
  wherever they want to at any height, taking away local government
  power to regulate that.
  It could even let private companies exercise eminent domain.
  Legislators please vote this bill down.

Energy: help pass two energy bills

Solar power can be a
distributed source of jobs in south Georgia.
Antique laws and a subsidized nuclear boondoggle are hobbling solar power.

• 
  GA SB 51, The Georgia Cogeneration and Distributed Generation Act
  
  Senator Buddy Carter has introduced a Senate bill for the current session
  of the legislature, SB 51, "The Georgia Cogeneration and Distributed
  Generation Act of 2001". It attempts to fix Georgia's special solar
  financing problem, the antique 1973 Territorial Electric Service Act,
  which says you can only sell power you generate to your one and only
  pre-determined electric utility, at whatever rate that utility sets.

• 
  HB 267 Financing costs; construction of nuclear generating plant
  
  Stop Georgia Power from charging customers for cost overruns for Plant Vogtle,
  already 15 months behind schedule and a billion dollars overbudget for power
  that nobody has received, yet Georgia Power has already billed customers about
  $1.7 billion.
  Bipartisan cosponsors are Jeff Chapman (R—Brunswick) District 167 and
  Karla Drenner (D—Avondale Estates) District 85.
  This boondoggle on the Savannah River is what Georgia Power and Southern Company
  are doing instead of deploying solar inland and wind off the coast.

-jsq