Here's Maril Hazlett, PhD, of the estimable CEP and CEP blog:
Issue: Major KS utilities and a creative, interesting version of a carbon tax
Bill No.: SB 471, as amended last night by the House Committee of the Whole and passed 78-42
Summary/ Action: Measure failed on final action vote, 51 yea, 74 nay. Measure is lost. (Which means the people who would have benefited under the original measure, which offered tax credits for adoption and live organ donation, are just out of luck, because a large corporation decided to highjack their measure.)
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...Before launching in to the record, CEP would like to note: This carbon tax is a fake carbon tax, in that it does not actually reduce CO2 emissions.........However, when you return the revenues of a carbon tax to just one utility - um. That’s not very fair. This is not really a carbon tax, as much as it is a money grab by a special interests group, at the expense of ratepayers not within their own service territory.....
I could not do this task. I could not do it behind a mask. I would Ebonic/Teutonic ax and ask.
("Yes your Honor, I pead guilty to legicide, and if I could ax the Court...)
How can you do it, write policy suggestions (demands, diktats, I don't know how far you push them) for a state legislature and then live-blog the results:
...What’s the point of all this…? There are of course many theories. The two most likely candidates: (1) This measure is meant to punish Wyandotte County, and to scare Westar and KCPL into pressuring legislators to vote for Sunflower. And (2) This is a really confrontational way for Sunflower to send a message that they are ready to make a deal - if the financing can be worked out.
(And I am sure that if I walked out into the hall, I could hear at least three more.)
For the proceedings as they - proceed (sorry, my brain’s not in gear yet, late night) - please read more. Once things get started around 9:00 a.m.
Ack! They moved straight to final action! Ack! MH was not ready....
It's a really good thing the post was headlined "Live Blogging: April Fools, a carbon tax proposal! — actually, not a joke " or I'd have thought the Kansas House and Maril were having some fun at my expense.
Nope. That's real, live state-house politics as can be seen at one of fifty-odd (and I mean odd) venues, if not now, coming soon to a Capitol near you .
For some reason I am reminded of this story from the New York Times:
SANG TO AVOID A FIRE PANIC.; Opera Company Members Showed Presence of Mind at Syracuse.
November 30, 1902, Sunday
Page 1, 466 words
SYRACUSE, N.Y., Nov. 29 -- Fire started in the basement of John Sabey's wholesale hat store to-night. The smoke was dense and entered the stage of the Wieting Opera House just about the conclusion of an opera. The stage manager informed the company that there was no danger, but to avoid a panic they should show no alarm and finish the opera.
