Campaign to persuade Maine Attorney General Mills to introduce a Code of Conduct for Wind
I am going to write up a Petition and put it up on the petition site. Does anybody want to help me write the Petition? I have been looking at NY State's code but wonder whether Maine's will need to include a class of Politicians that the NY code doesn't focus on. The NY code talks about Municipal officers but nothing about the Governor or House and Senate politicians.
I tried to talk to somebody at the AG's office yesterday but nobody was available. To be honest I feel I have done as much as I can on my own with Freedom of Information requests and contact with the AG's office. The only thing I think would make them stand up and notice now would be a petition from the Citizens of the State of Maine calling on the Attorney General to institute a Law preventing elected officials from profiting from their own policies in regards to the Wind industry.
What thinks you?
Views: 206
Comment
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Comment by Art Brigades on January 1, 2010 at 4:36pm
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It's one thing for an AG to take action against companies for anti-competitive or illegal and improper business dealings, which is all good. It's another for the AG to issue an instruction essentially saying, "please behave yourselves."
A legislator like McLeod would certianly have to recuse himself from voting on a law that he knows will directly benefit him. That keeps him in compliance with the Conflict of Interest law. But if he voted for the Expedited Siting law in 2008, then in 2009 was contacted by a Big Wind land aquisition agent for purposes of siting a turbine, he has broken no law. If the measure upon which he votes gives him a direct benefit, and he knows about it at the time he votes, then he deserves to have the book thrown at him. Likewise if some selectman owns the side of a hill and he facilitates a Big Wing developer, and/or uses his public position to advance the interests of the developer, AND if he profits from the above...say he gets a ground lease for three turbines...then that selctman is violating the conflict of interst law.
Again, I'm all for putting the screws to these nefarious characters, but you gotta be able to land a blow. Perhaps the mere public relations effect of the AG issuing a warning that she will be on heightened prowl aginst misdeeds will be all that we can expect.
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Comment by Long Islander on January 1, 2010 at 4:27pm
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In NYS, US Congressman Eric Massa (D) has requested of President Obama that First Wind's stimulus gift (a total of $115 MILLION by the way), be revoked and has called for a GAO investigation of them - a company with a business model of LIE, CHEAT AND CORRUPT, according to Congressman Massa. The person heading up development for First Wind (Mars Hill, Stetson, Rollin, etc.) is Kurt Adams, Governor Baldacci's chief council of three years whom the governor appointed to head the PUC. Massa_USRep_D,NY__letter_to_Obama.pdf
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Comment by Lyle on January 1, 2010 at 4:25pm
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Rep Martin of Bangor (Not Eagle Lake) thought a code of conduct was a good idea based on NY Code and on my behalf, after I had independently requested AG introduce a code similar, went to the AG. Nothing ever came of it. Assistant AG Jerry Reid was tasked with having a look at it. He was the AG tasked to work on the Plum Creek bid as well by the way! The reason they didn't go ahead was because, they claimed, I was the only one complaining. This was simply not true. They even went as far as to claim no one at all had complained in an article to the Bangor Daily News. I don't know why The Bangor Daily News didn't pick the AG up on that as I had sent them a copy of my complaint to the BDN. The citizens of NY have been through all this before. Its really a struggle for us because I do think Cuomo was on the ball. Mills won't budge unless, she claims, enough citizens complain.
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Here is the wind company code of conduct from the website of the NY State Attorney General, Andrew Cuomo. ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO LAUNCHES INVESTIGATION INTO WIND POWER COMPANIES' CONDUCT ACROSS UPSTATE NEW YORK
Allegations of Improper Dealings with Public Officials and Anti-Competitive Practices
Subpoenas Served on First Wind/UPC Wind and Noble Environmental Power, LLC
ALBANY, NY (July 15, 2008) - Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced today the launching of an investigation into two companies developing and operating wind farms across New York state amid allegations of improper dealings with public officials and anti-competitive practices.
Subpoenas were served on Newton, Massachusetts-based First Wind (formerly known as UPC Wind) and Essex, Connecticut-based Noble Environmental Power, LLC. They are part of an investigation into whether companies developing wind farms improperly sought or obtained land-use agreements with citizens and public officials; whether improper benefits were given to public officials to influence their actions, and whether they entered into anti-competitive agreements or practices.
In recent months, the Office of the Attorney General has received numerous complaints regarding the two companies from citizens, groups and public officials in eight counties alleging improper relations between the companies and local officials and other improper practices.
The Attorney General’s subpoenas seek, among other things:
All documents concerning any benefits conferred on any individual or entity in connection with wind farm activity.
All agreements, easements or contracts with individuals regarding placement of wind turbines.
Agreements between wind companies that may indicate anti-competitive practices.
All documents pertaining to any payments or benefits received from local, state or federal agencies. http://www.ag.ny.gov/media_center/2008/jul/july15a_08.html NY State Attorney General Code of Conduct - Wind Farms.pdf
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Art Brigades,
First Wind has already been subpeoned by NY State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. I asked Maine AG Mills if Maine would introduce a code. She said not enough people had complained and that there was already laws on the books to prevent people like my Rep Everett Mcleod from benefiting from his own policies by leasing his Land to First Wind. That is why the code was introduced in NY State. I wish I knew which laws Mills was talking about. Nobody has been able to tell me.
See http://www.ag.ny.gov/media_center/2008/oct/oct30a_08.html
and http://cleantech.com/news/4738/first-wind-brings-191m-financing
"In October 2008, New York's Attorney General Andrew Cuomo announced a new wind industry ethics code that establishes guidelines to facilitate the development of alternative energy in New York, while assuring the public the wind power industry is acting properly and within the law.
The code calls for new oversight through a multi-agency task force, and establishes transparency expected to deter improper relationships between wind development companies and government officials. Noble and First Wind both signed the agreement. "
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Lyle- I am all for good conduct, especially among politicians and Big Wind. But it isn't clear what you aim to achieve here. Are you proposing that the AG go above the law and create a conduct code to single out one industry? Are you proposing that she take the lead on/introduce legislation that would tighten existing ethics laws? Not sure there's anything to hang your hat on here. I suggest you have a private conversation with Jonathan Wayne at the State Ethics Commission before going public with anything.
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Maine Center For Public Interest Reporting – Three Part Series: A CRITICAL LOOK AT MAINE’S WIND ACT
******** IF LINKS BELOW DON'T WORK, GOOGLE THEM*********
(excerpts) From Part 1 – On Maine’s Wind Law “Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine if the law’s goals were met." . – Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, August 2010 https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/From Part 2 – On Wind and Oil Yet using wind energy doesn’t lower dependence on imported foreign oil. That’s because the majority of imported oil in Maine is used for heating and transportation. And switching our dependence from foreign oil to Maine-produced electricity isn’t likely to happen very soon, says Bartlett. “Right now, people can’t switch to electric cars and heating – if they did, we’d be in trouble.” So was one of the fundamental premises of the task force false, or at least misleading?" https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-swept-task-force-set-the-rules/From Part 3 – On Wind-Required New Transmission Lines Finally, the building of enormous, high-voltage transmission lines that the regional electricity system operator says are required to move substantial amounts of wind power to markets south of Maine was never even discussed by the task force – an omission that Mills said will come to haunt the state.“If you try to put 2,500 or 3,000 megawatts in northern or eastern Maine – oh, my god, try to build the transmission!” said Mills. “It’s not just the towers, it’s the lines – that’s when I begin to think that the goal is a little farfetched.” https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/flaws-in-bill-like-skating-with-dull-skates/
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Hannah Pingree on the Maine expedited wind law
Hannah Pingree - Director of Maine's Office of Innovation and the Future
"Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine."
https://pinetreewatch.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/
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