By John Downey NC WARN has filed an ethics complaint against Sen. Dan Blue, D-Wake, contending there is a conflict of interest between his sponsorship of legislation about utility regulation and his law firm’s work for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline. The complaint, filed Wednesday morning with the N.C. Ethics Commission, raises …
SB 559
Senate Bill 559 as originally written could have allowed electric monopolies to gouge customers for billions in bogus charges and get a single regulatory approval for five-year blocks of annual rate increases – all with even less public and regulatory oversight than exists under the current system. Every stakeholder group opposed the bill – business big and small, consumer, clean energy and environmental justice groups. Only Duke and its political cronies promoted it, and the bill was ultimately stripped of the harmful annual rate hike provisions.
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Complaint filed over Wake lawmaker’s Duke Energy bill, his law firm’s pipeline work — WRAL
A climate change group known for taking on Duke Energy filed an ethics complaint against Senate Minority Leader Dan Blue on Wednesday, suggesting that his support of key legislation for the company is tied to work his family law firm does for the Duke’s planned natural gas pipeline.
Democrat Dan Blue should address his conflict of interest with Duke Energy — News & Observer
[NC WARN] says Blue, a Wake County Democrat and the Senate minority leader, has a glaring conflict of interest. He is the lead sponsor of legislation, Senate Bill 559, that would change the state’s utility commission’s rate-setting structure even as Blue’s law firm — which includes his two sons — is representing a holding company tied to Duke Energy in eminent domain cases related to the Atlantic Coast Pipeline.
Group files ethics complaint against state Sen. Dan Blue, a Raleigh Democrat — The Associated Press
A clean-energy advocacy group wants an investigation into whether a longtime North Carolina legislator violated ethics laws by pushing legislation sought by Duke Energy Corp. while his law firm did legal work for a gas pipeline project.
NC Democrat faces ethics complaint over work for Duke Energy, Atlantic Coast Pipeline — News & Observer
The top Democrat in the North Carolina Senate is facing accusations that Duke Energy is paying him as he helps advance the utility company’s legislative agenda.
Ongoing Ethics Violations Cited against NC Senate Minority Leader Dan Blue — News Release from NC WARN
A watchdog group today filed a lengthy complaint with the NC Ethics Commission outlining what they say is an improper arrangement between Duke Energy and Senate Minority Leader Dan Blue.
Visual Timeline: When Did Dealmaking Begin?
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Good for planning ahead or padding profits? Critics fight a plan for Duke Energy rates – News & Observer
Debate over a controversial proposal on electricity rates ratcheted up this week with two environmental groups’ full-page newspaper ad asking the state Senate’s top-ranking Democrat, Dan Blue, to end his support for a Duke Energy bill and stop taking the company’s “dirty money.”The North Carolina Conservation Network was calling residents Monday, asking them to register their opposition to Senate Bill 559, which it described as a “blank check for Duke Energy.”
Duke Boosted Donations to Grease Ugly Bill — News Release from EJNC
A report out today from a coalition of 14 community and environmental justice organizations reveals that Duke Energy skewed its political campaign contributions last year in order to gain support from Senate Minority Leader Dan Blue and other lawmakers instrumental in reviewing what is now a highly controversial bill.
Legislators Should Reject Duke Energy Deception and Annual Rate Hike Bill — News Release from EJNC
Senate Bill 559 is a bait & switch for the rejected $13 billion grid scheme and $10 billion in coal ash costs – further proof that it’s time to end the Duke monopoly.
Groups target Duke Energy in extraordinary campaign to end monopoly control of NC electric system and public officials
A new, diverse coalition of 15 local, state and national groups today launched what they called a vigorous statewide campaign to end Duke Energy’s monopoly control of North Carolina’s energy markets and public officials, saying the corporation is harming communities, gouging consumers and making climate change worse. It’s a rare citizen-led effort organized to break up the monopoly control of a U.S. corporate utility.
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