The so-called Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative that has tied and taxed captive electricity customers in Virginia to high cost, losing population States to our northeast is more accurately named the Regressive Gouging Gimmicky Idiocy. Here’s why:

1. It’s Regressive in that the people proportionally hurt worst by unnecessarily higher monthly electricity and energy bills are lower, middle income families and small businesses. The added hundred of dollars of add-on “riders” are more easily borne by wealthy power users than lower and middle income families struggling to provide for their families with government imposed taxes or riders that increase the cost of electricity, energy and consequently the Cost of living. Think of higher prices of Food from grocery stores that require much refrigeration and lighting and products or services from any business operation that uses electricity.  
See, 3 below on other deceptive policies that will regressively harm Virginians. 

2. It Gouges captive ratepayers and businesses without their consent in a way that the People in States adjacent to our south and west aren’t. Our competitor States of Tennessee and North Carolina have much lower taxes than Virginia and the RGGI carbon tax is another tax on electricity that harms Virginia’s competitiveness for more jobs and investment. 
Energy efficiency and conservation projects can be desirable goals. And, the goals can be made a priority with General Fund revenues rather than additional RGGI taxes. 

3. It’s a deceptive Gimmick that has no effect on the weather or climate in the region, the USA or the world. It only increases the cost of electricity for people in the States bound into this gimmicky scheme.    

Even worse, due to recent changes in regulation of electricity monopolies, the Riders/ additional Charges were clearly listed on monthly power bills will become hidden in the base rate. Thus, with this lack of transparency, captive ratepayers will no longer readily able to read the cost of RGGI that added hundreds of dollars annually to bills. Moreover, in the future the specific Charges for “Rider CE Clean Energy Projects”, Rider RPS Renewable Energy Pgm”, “Coal Ash Closure”, and hiding the monstrously costly “Rider Off-shore Wind”- all will become obscured to customers. The Virginia off-shore wind project is not guaranteed to operate even 3 out of 7 days a week failing to meet the standard of a “reasonable and prudent “ standard. It is awfully expensive and unreliable Unfortunately, captive customers of the monopoly utility will be forced to pay for some of the very highest cost electricity in the entire nation, according to the impartial State Corporation Commission. 

4. It is Idiocy to impose these added RGGI carbon taxes on captive customers in Virginia. 
The people of Virginia are already saddled with too many excessive, collusive energy schemes now and developing. (As expressed above relative to the $10 Billion+ intermittent 176 turbines Off-shore wind boondoggle). This added RGGI carbon tax particularly hurts working families and small businesses. It has no effect on the environment or climate. It does make Virginia electricity more costly and less competitive by linking us with high cost States that are seeing an exodus of people, capital and investment.                                                                                              -            
 In sum, for honesty in governance For the People of Virginia and their cost of living, our competitiveness, our sovereignty and our attractiveness as a better place to live, learn, work and raise a family- please decide to remove Virginia from this Regressive, gouging, gimmicky idiocy. 

Please choose to Stay strong and positive for Freedom and opportunities for all!