November 30, 2010
Massachusetts

Massachusetts wind power bill on hold

Boston Business Journal - by Kyle Alspach, www.bizjournals.com 29 November 2010

Massachusetts Senate President Therese Murray has put a controversial wind power siting bill on hold, the State House News Service reported.

The bill, which seeks to streamline the approval process for wind power projects, won approval from both the state House and Senate this year, but didn’t get the final vote needed for passage during the formal legislative session in July.

Murray and fellow Senate Democrats attempted on more than two dozen occasions to pass the bill during the informal legislative session, but were blocked by Senate Republicans, who argued it would take too much control away from local authorities.

Advocates have contended it would still provide for local officials to perform a full review, and would only serve to ensure that wind developers have some certainty about what to expect from the process.

Senate leaders recently stopped pursuing the bill’s passage, the News Service reported. Now, Murray and other Senate leaders are waiting for Senate Republicans to settle their competition for minority leader before deciding how to proceed with the bill, according to the News Service.

The News Service reported that Sen. Bruce Tarr, R-Gloucester, has emerged as the likely successor to outgoing Sen. Richard Tisei, R-Wakefield.

Tarr had repeatedly objected to the passage of the wind siting bill during the informal session.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2010/11/30/mass-wind-power-bill-on-hold/