Dusty Johnson for South Dakota PUC

Politicians make lots of promises.  Over the last six years, I have worked hard to keep the promises I made as a candidate, and I think I’ve been successful.  We work as a team at the PUC, and I have had the honor of serving with great commissioners and staff members. Although I’ve had a role in each of these successes, many people deserve credit for our accomplishments.

• Wind development in South Dakota has taken off, with 600 megawatts of capacity expected on-line by the end of 2010.  Those turbines will produce as much electricity in a year as is used by half of all the homes in our state.
• Energy efficiency became a front-burner issue in 2008 when we launched “South Dakota Energy Smart,” a major initiative focused on putting more efficiency plans and programs into the hands of consumers.  “South Dakota Energy Smart” has been successful and the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) recently named South Dakota one of the most improved states in the country.
• Openness in government is a key value of the PUC.  All documents filed with the Commission are placed on-line, usually within a few hours.  Commission meetings are streamed on the Internet and archived for future use.  Dusty served on Attorney General Larry Long’s Open Government Task Force and supported the bills the resulted from that process.
• Fiscal responsibility is important when you’re the smallest PUC in the country.  Each year Dusty’s been on the Commission, the PUC has found places to trim their own budget.  The result has been more than $100,000 saved for the taxpayers and ratepayers.
• High-speed Internet connects South Dakota families and businesses with the global economy.  From the South Dakota Broadband Road Trip (which featured Federal Communications Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein) to keeping in place policies that help rural providers build out their networks to helping evaluate the applications submitted for the federal stimulus broadband program, the PUC has worked hard to encourage high-speed Internet.
• New transmission lines are key to robust wind development.  The PUC supported successful legislation allowing expedited cost recovery for transmission lines and has approved a number of high-voltage transmission lines in the last five years.
• Grain inspection has gained new importance as ethanol plants have become major purchasers of grain.  Two years ago the PUC formed a blue ribbon panel to revise its rules and regulations.  Those changes have been a success, and even with all of the changes and volatility in the marketplace today, producers and better protected today than ever before.
• Small wind turbines allow landowners to generate their own electricity.  The PUC has been a true leader in this area, approving streamlined interconnection rules and proposing the five-part “Small Renewable Energy Initiative” to help better incentivize small wind and solar.
• Cell phone service has increased dramatically in our state.  More than 200 new towers have gone up in recent years, and the PUC has fought for consumers throughout the Verizon-Alltel and AT&T-Alltel transactions.  The PUC has worked closely with dozens of communities to secure them improved wireless coverage.
• Smart siting is among the most important jobs of the PUC.  The siting of the Keystone Pipeline, wind farms across the state, and power plants near Milbank and Groton wasn’t easy, but Dusty worked hard to make sure that landowners and the environment were protected.  The order approving the Keystone Pipeline alone had 57 conditions placed upon the applicant by the PUC.
• Do Not Call Registry has been a huge success in South Dakota.  Since its debut in 2003, more than 450,000 South Dakotans have taken the opportunity to protect themselves from unwanted telemarketing calls.
• Wind for Schools is an innovative program that places small turbines at schools for educational purposes.  The PUC was the first state facilitator for the program, and Dusty secured more than $30,000 in financial support from utilities and wind developers to make the project a reality.
• Responding to disasters requires competency, caring, and quick action.  On a number of occasions since 2004 the PUC has served as the a liaison among utilities, the Governor’s Office, and multiple state and federal agencies during blizzards causing widespread power outages.  After the blizzards of 2005 and 2006, the PUC developed a report analyzing the utility response and identifying areas for improvement.  The PUC also held meetings with company representatives to discuss their plans and needs and the PUC’s role in preparing for future catastrophic incidents.
• Working with local governments has resulted in model ordinances for both cell phone towers and for wind development.  The ordinances were drafted to be easily adapted by local governments to meet their needs to encourage development without sacrificing responsibility and integrity and were distributed to more than 370 planning and zoning agencies throughout the state.
• Protecting consumers has always been job number one at the PUC.  Since 2004 more than 10,000 consumers have been helped with their concerns, complaints, and questions and a number of consumer-friendly bills have been passed.  Most important of these may have been the “ring-fencing” legislation that protect customers served by electric and natural gas utilities from risks associated with the ownership and operation of affiliated companies. The intent of this ring-fencing legislation is to separate the public utility’s operations from those of a nonutility affiliated company or subsidiary.