Summary

The high cost of fuel oil continues to present tremendous challenges to those living in Alaska’s rural communities. Despite the fact costs have dropped from their record highs in 2008 and 2009, every day Alaskans all over the state are still being squeezed by fuel costs that remain about double the prices of just four years ago. Nearly all aspects of rural life have become challenges because of the high cost of fuel.  Lisa Murkowski remains committed to alleviating the impact on rural Alaska.

Utilizing Her Committee Positions to Provide Assistance

To help lessen the pain, Lisa Murkowski has worked on several fronts. As ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, she helped lead an effort that doubled federal funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and allowed more Alaskans to qualify for aid. Also, when it became clear that not all those in need were able to qualify for the aid quickly enough, Lisa worked with the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Washington to convince them to send additional general assistance to struggling communities. For the longer term, Lisa Murkowski won funding for a renewable energy deployment grant program increasing federal aid to help rural villages and utilities afford to install renewable energy projects. The grants provide funds for wind turbines or more funding to install geothermal projects or biomass projects that offer the promise of lower electricity costs for years ahead. Lisa Murkowski also won specific federal grants for projects, including Naknek’s geothermal project, Unalaska’s geothermal project, $11.8 million to continue the Denali Commission’s efforts to improve the energy efficiency of rural diesel-generated electricity plants, and $18.5 million for the high-cost energy grant program that provides financial assistance for the improvement of energy generation, transmission, and distribution facilities in rural Alaskan communities with high home energy costs.

Rural Energy Solutions

In August 2008, Lisa Murkowski conducted a Senate Committee on Indian Affairs field hearing in Bethel to receive testimony on the high cost of fuel in rural Alaska, and explore sustainable energy solutions. In response to that hearing, she won Senate Energy Committee approval last summer of provisions included in a new comprehensive energy bill (S. 1462). These provisions will provide Native corporations and tribes double renewable energy credits from a pending Renewable Electricity Standard that they can sell to pay off new renewable electricity projects.

These credits will help rural areas install wind turbines, small hydroelectric, biomass, solar, and marine energy devices that should cut energy costs dramatically.

The bill also provides greater assistance for installation of long-distance electric transmission so power can get to rural villages. This summer, Lisa introduced a series of incentives to further help small hydroelectric power to be installed throughout Alaska.

Indian Energy Program

Lisa Murkowski supports pending Indian energy amendments in the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs that could help bring lower cost power to rural villages. The provisions will help tribes gain more weatherization funds to cut energy costs, and set up a demonstration program to help renewable energy projects, including underground gasification projects on Native lands. She will continue to fight for the High Cost Energy grant program through the USDA’s Rural Utility Service that provides federal funding for electricity upgrade projects throughout rural Alaska.

Looking to the Future

Lisa Murkowski continues fighting to gain more federal funding to build renewable energy projects in Alaska.  In addition, she is evaluating whether a fuel buying cooperative can be established so that rural villages and utilities can buy their fuel at the cheapest prices and then have greater storage to save it for when it is needed. She is working to continue Denali Commission funding to finish the job of fixing fuel storage tanks and replacing out-dated diesel turbines in all remaining rural villages. Lisa Murkowski will also work to gain funding for more innovative transmission projects, or “smart grid” installation, so that rural communities can gain cheaper power from regional hydro, geothermal or biomass projects.

Lisa Murkowski Delivers on Rural Energy

• Provided funding for the High Cost Energy Grant Program – $18.5 million  (2009, FY10 Agriculture and Rural Development Appropriations Bill)
• Sponsored and included a series of provisions to make a pending Renewable Electricity Standard beneficial for Alaskans. The bill will:

1.      Permit Alaska utilities that generate renewable energy to sell credits to utilities in the Lower 48; and

2.      Allow Alaska Native corporations and tribes to gain extra (double) credits from the generation of renewable energy, which may help to finance renewable projects in rural areas.

• Won an amendment to provide credits for the installation of additional forms of hydroelectric power, including lake-taps of any size, small hydro projects defined as projects up to 50 megawatts in size, and pumped storage projects.
• Authored and won passage of loan and grant program for small (less than 5 megawatt) hydroelectric projects to replace expensive diesel fuel (2008 PL 110-246).
• Sponsored provisions in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 which authorized Indian Energy Assistance to develop rural energy project and $550 million over a decade for rural energy development via the Denali Commission.