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New York State Senate candidate Oneida
County Executive Joseph A. Griffo today called for immediate
action to develop a statewide energy plan and also for actions
that would reduce the pain drivers are feeling at the pumps.
“Government is all about getting the job done,” Griffo
said. “New York State did not get the job done last September,
when spiking energy costs presented a clear and present danger
to the way of life that is part of Upstate New York. Instead
of an agreement, we have partisan bickering. I am running for
office because I know that there is a need for action, not just
talk. I call upon the Legislature to do in this session what
should have been done six months ago: provide short-term relief
for drivers who cannot continue to pay staggering gasoline prices
and to develop a long-range statewide energy plan that will protect
the needs of Upstate while setting a long-range course that will
help preserve jobs and protect consumers.”
Griffo said the energy crisis is a symptom
of why reform is needed in Albany. “Everyone agreed last
fall there was a problem. No one agreed on the solution. So instead
of any action at all on behalf of Upstate drivers, homeowners
and businesses, we had the usual dysfunctional gridlock,” Griffo
said. “We
are not just paying for spot shortages or the tactics of Big
Oil; we in New York are paying the price for inaction in Albany;
inaction that cannot be allowed to continue.”
Noting that,
as both a sitting County Executive and a candidate for the Senate
he would support reasonable alternatives that help consumers,
Griffo also outlined his own Energy Agenda.
Working Families Gas Card Program
“Working families are
the bedrock of our Upstate New York communities. The Soccer Moms
who take children to activities, the men and women who put in
a good days work for an honest day’s
wage – they are the ones being hammered at by gas price
increases that are threatening the way of life for the people
of Upstate New York’s small, proud communities,” Griffo
said. “For people who live in the suburban and rural areas
of Upstate New York, gasoline is not a luxury, it is a basic
necessity. The working people of Upstate New York have few mass
transit services they can use as alternatives. Going to work
or taking the kids to sports, lessons and activities means paying
near-record prices at the pumps. In suburban and rural areas
of St. Lawrence, Lewis and Oneida Counties, working families
are seeing their wages diminished by the return of vicious spikes
in gasoline prices. Rural Upstate and its way of life are being
threatened by costs that wrongly penalize the very people New
York needs the most – hard-working people who come in to
work day in and day out because of their terrific work ethic.
All across the 47th District there are families suffering because
men and women who drive 15 or 20 miles to work are being forced
to pay higher prices at the pump just to survive. New York needs
to deliver – now – with a $500 gas card that these
families can use like a credit card to pay for gasoline.”
Griffo
also noted that North Country residents who battle winter conditions
to get to work can’t just ditch trucks and SUVs
for higher-mileage vehicles. “When you live out on the
Tug Hill Plateau and you commute to work every day no matter
how much snow falls, SUVs and trucks are a way of life,” Griffo
said. “New York State needs to provide real relief for
the real-life needs of its people, and this is just one way that
we can do that.”
Griffo said the gas cards were effectively
used by county Departments of Social Services to help low-income
people get to work during welfare-to-work and welfare reform
projects. “We know these
cards are a benefit to consumers. There is no reason why we cannot
act now to have a gas card in the hands of every Upstate family
that files a tax return,” Griffo said. “During last
year’s crisis, Albany failed to act. For the past two weeks,
Albany has failed to act. How much longer must working Upstate
families pay the price because the politicians can’t get
the job done?”
Griffo said funding to support the project
should come from the state budget surplus that was, in part,
amassed by a statewide sales tax windfall that began last fall
when prices first spiked. He noted that funding from the surplus
that was earmarked for a property tax rebate program that was
never adopted could cover the cost of the gas card program. He
said the program could provide one gas card per family as a short-term
way to help families deal with gas price spikes.
Price breaks
for key employers, consumers
Griffo also called for allowing counties to provide gasoline
price breaks for employers who rely on transportation. “In
Oneida County, transportation and distribution is a major part
of our economy. So is agriculture. Counties need the ability
to provide a certain number of businesses with fuel at the same
contract prices paid by state or local governments. These prices
are often well below rising pump prices. Insulating employers
from energy cost spikes helps them preserve jobs and remain competitive.
Just as we have Empire Zones to offset onerous fees and taxes,
we can provide these benefits to key employers.”
Griffo
said that he would also encourage service station operators and
major oil companies to develop long-term contracts for fuel prices
that would allow consumers who want to “lock in” prices
to do so. “Right now, consumers have no options. They have
to pay what the stations charge on the day they need to buy gas,” Griffo
said. “We need to be consumer-friendly and give consumers
the widest possible choices.”
Revise gasoline tax structure
Griffo said New York should convert the state sales tax on gasoline
to a fixed rate instead of a percentage of the price. “Charging
sales tax as a percentage of the total price means that when
prices go up, consumers get hit even harder,” he said. “Instead
of increasing the tax as prices rise, we need to set the tax
at a flat rate per gallon. We need to set the rate initially
at the minimum amount needed to meet state budget figures. That
rate can be adjusted downward if prices fall.”
Griffo said
counties should also have the option to set sales taxes on gasoline
at a fixed rate once the state passes legislation to overhaul
the sales tax structure for fuel. “Our experience
from last fall, when prices first spiked above $3 per gallon,
was that our overall sales tax collections in Oneida County did
not spike, meaning that consumers who paid more at the pump were
not spending their money in other places. Giving up a few pennies
at the pump may bring us a few pennies spent when consumers buy
goods and services at our local merchants. I see it as a very
positive trade-off for Oneida County,” he said.
New transit incentives
“Parts of Upstate will never rely
on mass transit, but in and around our urban areas, we need to
better explore connecting people not currently served by mass
transit with areas not currently served, so that agencies like
CENTRO have a financial incentive to provide upscale transit
service for people who have —until
now – never considered the options. Mass transit may never
replace the car, but if we can increase ridership slightly, we
make a big difference in the amount of gasoline used by commuters.
State-subsidized transit routes that connect workers and lower
energy use can help our region.”
Anti-gouging legislation
“If we reduce the sales tax, the consumer needs to get
the benefit of that through lower prices at the pump,” Griffo
said. Coupled with the state sales tax reduction, Griffo said
anti-gouging legislation should require prices to be dropped
by the amount of the sales tax immediately, or face prosecution. “Every
time we think gas prices should go down, we get a lot of market
mumbo-jumbo instead of the relief motorists need. Anyone who
uses the tax cut as an excuse to skim profits should be punished
through aggressive enforcement,” Griffo said.
Griffo also
called for action to address the massive, sudden increases
in gasoline prices that have been clobbering drivers. “I
acknowledge that supply and demand are major forces, but the
structure of the oil industry, with only a few major refiners,
contributes to prices at the pump being higher than they should
be. Every time there is a crisis, gas prices jump. If under
the law this is not price gouging, it is certainly anti-consumer
behavior that needs to be addressed. We need aggressive enforcement
at the state and federal levels so that Big Oil does not trample
New Yorkers.”
State Energy Policy Leadership
“New York needs an energy policy that puts consumers, businesses
and drivers in the forefront, not just the energy industry,” Griffo
said. “New York needs to establish an Energy Coordinator
who can provide unbiased expertise on energy issues, play
a watchdog role against Big Oil taking us for a ride, help
establish a state petroleum reserve and play a lead role
in defending consumers so that the state Public Service Commission
meets the needs of those who pay the bills.”
Electricity
“If an employer can’t afford to have the light on,
they can’t do business in New York. Supply and demand
are the major laws that govern economics. New York needs
to add new generating capacity. That’s a years-long
process. Aside from wind energy sites here and there, there
has been no major increase in New York’s generating
capacity in years. We need to increase the numbers of towers
generating wind energy, jump-start the process of increasing
solar panel use through consumer education and further
tax credits, maximize the economic impact of the low-cost
hydropower we have by targeting it for economic development
and expansion, and consider new technologies that can generate
energy from waste.”
Griffo also said New York needs
to discuss additional nuclear power generation facilities. “We
need to discuss whether this is an option, because it is
one way to provide new generation capacity; however there
is also significant discussion that needs to take place
in regards to safety.”
Business energy tax credit
Griffo said small businesses deserve a credit on their
taxes. “I
believe every small business with under 100 workers should
be able to take a tax credit of up to $1,000 or their largest moth
of energy usage, as documented by a paid utility bill,
as an incentive to keep these struggling businesses alive,” Griffo
said. “Small business has historically been the economic
engine that drives the American economy. Investing in small
employers now means they can stay and grow in New York.”
Senior
heating tax credit
Griffo proposed a similar tax credit for seniors, so that
seniors who own their homes and have incomes of under $100,000
could receive a rebate of up to $500, depending upon where
in the state they live. Griffo said seniors who rent and
pay for heat should receive smaller rebates of $150 each.
Energy conservation tax break
“Fixing older housing to make it
energy efficient is a big job,” Griffo said. “To
encourage homeowners, I propose that homeowners who live in their
homes and perform $1,000 or more worth of improvements that reduce
energy costs receive a tax rebate on the sales tax they pay on
the goods and services needed for that project. That helps make
new windows or insulation more attractive and affordable, lowering
consumption.”
Griffo also supports a tax break for
homeowners who offset the cost of water heating, the third largest
cost in most homes, by buying a solar-powered water heater. Griffo
noted a proposal from Gov. Pataki that sought to accomplish this
goal. Pataki had noted that in addition to lowered costs, over
20 years, a 3 kilowatt (kW) solar electric system will eliminate
65 tons of carbon dioxide, which is the chief greenhouse gas
responsible for global warming and climate change; 670 pounds
of sulfur dioxide, which contributes to acid rain; and 250 pounds
of nitrogen oxides, which is the primary ingredient in smog.
Over its 20-year lifetime, one solar water heater eliminates
more than 50 tons of carbon dioxide emissions.
Alternative fuel
tax credit package
“When we look at the energy picture, we need to be looking
five years down the road, if not more,” Griffo said. “We
want to help our farmers become part of the pipeline to grow
crops that can be used as alternative fuels. We want to encourage
bio-fuel facilities in our area. We want to encourage consumers
and dealer to sell alternative fuel vehicles,” Griffo said. “Tax
credits that do this are an investment in a sounder future for
the state.”
Griffo said parts of a package proposed by the state
Senate last year are part of his package: A refundable
tax credit to manufacturers of qualified bio-fuel products,
such as ethanol and bio-diesel; and renewing the alternative
fueled vehicle tax credit. Griffo would also create a
tax credit for farmers planting crops grown for biofuels,
to provide an incentive and relieve the hard economic
times experienced by local farmers.
Promoting conservation by example
Griffo noted that with limited energy supplies, reducing demand
is a major step to control price spikes wile long-range
plans are being implemented. “State
government needs to lead the way as an example,” Griffo said. “We
need to dump the gas guzzlers for bureaucrats, wipe out the waste in
junkets and travel, and do in Albany what people are doing across New
York State this year – reducing heat and electricity consumption
by using less heat and turning off the air conditioners unless they
are needed. It’s pretty hard
to expect average people to listen to state government when it is not
setting an example. We need a state government energy scorecard so
that we can benchmark what is used now, and keep track of reductions
in the future.”
Above all: Action
Griffo noted that since the dramatic spike on energy costs since
August 2005, a number of proposals have offered relief. “I can see good and bad points
in many of the ideas that were offered, but to me the critical need was to do
something. Instead, nothing happened and now, the tourism spots across Upstate
fear a terrible season due to high gas prices. The way of life in rural Upstate
is facing a tremendous threat. And there is no leadership, no action, and no
one fighting for the people paying too much at the pump. Albany’s inaction
and its focus on power politics within the system are having direct economic
consequences across Upstate. That’s why we need the Legislature
to act now, before it is too late. And that is why I am seeking office,
so that I can be a catalyst for action in Albany. ”
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