Fuel Choice Continues to Expand
In July, Maine became the latest state to pass Fuel Choice legislation, ensuring natural gas remains an energy option for the state’s residents and businesses. According to Todd Jacobs, CEO of Summit Natural Gas of Maine, which lobbied in support of the law, “Fuel Choice reinforces the importance of giving Mainers the ability to choose the energy source that best meets their needs. It protects customer choice and allows us to continue making investments in communities.”
To strengthen their support for Fuel Choice, Summit Natural Gas partnered with the Maine Energy Marketers Association.
“As an association representing fuel deliverers across the state, MEMA had the infrastructure to coordinate the necessary outreach,” said Stephanie Sharp, Summit’s senior communications and external affairs strategist. That outreach included communicating with every state representative and senator candidate during election season, follow-up calls and emails, targeted social-media campaigns and press conferences.
“The main challenge was balancing policy conversations with the practical realities of what Maine customers want,” Jacobs said. “There’s a strong push toward electrification in state climate plans, and we had to clearly show that customers still want natural gas as a key part of their energy choices.”
Fuel Choice is an example of how infrastructure projects are about more than putting pipes in the ground, added Jacobs: “They’re about people, the customers you serve.” He encourages other utilities to balance policy matters with the practical needs of customers and to remember that customer demand needs to drive the solution. “Customers want options,” he said, “and utilities have an important role in making sure those options are reliable, affordable and sustainable for the long term.”
Dan Lapato, vice president of planning for the American Gas Association, believes Maine’s passing of the Fuel Choice law is a sign of positive things to come, as similar laws continue to be proposed across the country.
The fact that Maine is the 27th state to pass such legislation demonstrates that Fuel Choice “is not a minority movement,” Lapato said. He also noted that Maine represents the first time Fuel Choice passed as a result of a “Democratic trifecta.”
“A Democratic governor, lower House and upper Chamber all agreed to pass Fuel Choice,” Lapato said. “That signifies the importance of energy choice in the energy-policy discussion. And it demonstrates that Fuel Choice is not a Democratic or Republican ideal, a Red State versus Blue State thing. It’s a nonpartisan issue that focuses not on politics but on what customers truly want.”