Natural Gas Remains a Priority for the City: We still need your help
As many of you know by now, the Governor did not include funding for the Homer Area Natural Gasline in his version of the Capital Budget released December 15th. This $10.05m project would have funded the main extension of a natural gas pipeline from Anchor Point to Kachemak City bringing the benefits of affordable natural gas within reach of many businesses and homes.
While the City of Homer and many residents of the Southern Kenai Peninsula were disappointed the gas line was not included in the Governor’s budget, the hard work advocating for the line has laid a solid foundation for this year’s budget cycle. The project still remains a high priority for the City and we will be working with the Legislature to insert it into the Fiscal Year 2013 capital budget.
The Legislature has included the gas line in its version of the capital budget twice and it has been vetoed both times by the Governor ($525,000 remained from the first appropriation which put in a pressure reduction station and line to Chapman School in Anchor Point). After the most recent veto Governor Parnell said that he wants area residents to have more buy-in to the project. This has prompted discussion about Southern Peninsula users paying for a portion of the line through a $1 per thousand cubic feet (mcf) tariff that would be added to the price of natural gas over a 10 year period. At 2011 market prices, natural gas is one-third the cost of fuel oil and significantly cheaper than propane or electric heat. Even with the tariff built into the price of natural gas, Homer users would save more than 60% on their heating bill when compared with fuel oil.
We still need your help to get this project in the budget and keep it there. Keep up the letter writing/email campaign. A strong emphasis should be place on a personal anecdote or statistic on how more affordable energy will help your family or business. Letters do not have to be lengthy or detailed. Address your correspondence to:
Governor Sean Parnell: P.O. Box 11001, Juneau AK 99811 OR Governor@alaska.gov
Senator Gary Stevens: State Capitol, Juneau AK 99801 OR Senator_Gary_Stevens@legis.state.ak.us
Representative Paul Seaton: State Capitol, Juneau AK 99801 OR Representative_Paul_Seaton@legis.state.ak.us
Please contact the City Manager's office for more information on the Homer Area Natural Gas Line project. Presentations to community groups can be scheduled.