Marquette commission unanimously backs bills to preserve local power investments

The Marquette City Commission unanimously adopted a resolution Jan. 26 urging the Michigan Legislature to pass House Bills 4007 and 4283, moves city officials said are intended to preserve local electric-generation investments and shield ratepayers from higher costs.

City Manager Kovacs said the bills “would actually allow us to continue, allow BLP to continue to, have those natural gas fired, rice engines run,” and that the units were built to replace oversized coal plants. Kovacs told the commission the city still carries outstanding debt on those units through about 2036 while the equipment’s useful life extends toward 2050.

The resolution, read into the record by city staff, notes that the Marquette Board of Light and Power serves roughly 17,000 homes and businesses in the city and parts of nine surrounding townships. It says the bills would amend the Clean and Renewable Energy and Energy Waste Reduction Act (Public Act 295 of 2008) to broaden the definition of clean-energy systems and thereby enable continued operation of reciprocating internal-combustion-engine units already in service.

Commissioner Davis, who moved adoption of the resolution, said the measure is “something that we've been concerned about for the last several years” and framed passage as a way to avoid new costs for residents. Commissioner Gottlieb agreed, calling the bills an “interim way of proceeding into a clean energy society” while acknowledging the legislative language is not perfect.

Mayor Paul Schlegel said Marquette cannot be left behind and emphasized the city’s prior investments in local generation, saying the community must protect those investments while planning for a longer-term shift to renewable energy.

The commission voted by roll call, 7 to 0, to adopt the resolution. The resolution urges “swift passage through the Michigan legislature” and was signed by Mayor Paul Schlegel.

What’s next: The resolution is a formal expression of local support; passage in the state legislature would be required to change the underlying statutes cited in the resolution.