For Immediate Release

October 28, 2005

WASHINGTON SENATORS, CONGRESSMEN URGE DELAY
IN SHIFT TO REGIONAL TRANSMISSION ENTITY

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Nine of Washington's 11 members of the House and Senate have written a strongly-worded letter today to the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) chief today warning him not to proceed with a controversial proposal to create a regional electric transmission entity entitled "Grid West" because of the clear lack of regional consensus for the plan.

            In the letter, the lawmakers reminded BPA Administrator Stephen J. Wright that there is a "unique and longstanding tradition in the Pacific Northwest of consensus on regional energy matters," and that they were "hopeful that we can find a more acceptable and mutually-agreeable means of addressing our future electricity transmission needs."  They strongly urged him to withhold even a preliminary approval of the Grid West concept because it would set in place a governance and membership structure that would be difficult to alter in the future.

            Signing the letter were Senators Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell in addition to Reps. Jay Inslee, Rick Larsen, Brian Baird, Doc Hastings, Norm Dicks, Jim McDermott and Adam Smith.

            "We believe that it is important to allow the region more time to work together to forge a consensus proposal," the lawmakers' letter concluded.

            In releasing the delegation's letter Friday evening, U.S. Rep. Norm Dicks said that it was clear after the BPA Administrator briefed all of the state's congressmen last week in the Washington, D.C., "members were uneasy about creating a regional transmission organization that would be similar to several others around the nation that were not working properly."  He said follow-up meetings with utility organizations and energy experts this week convinced him and others that "it would be unwise to move hastily toward the creation of the Grid West entity when there was such widespread disagreement."

A copy of the delegation letter is available:  gridwestbpaletter.pdf

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