May 13, 2010

Dear Paul:

Thank you for contacting our office regarding House File 2399, the Nuclear Energy Jobs Creation Bill. We appreciate you taking the time to contact our office.

After passing both chambers of the legislature with wide bipartisan support, and thoroughly reviewing the legislation and public input; we signed this bill into law on April 28, 2010. The law is designed to help utility companies determine the feasibility of revolutionary sources of cleaner, more environmentally friendly energy, while strengthening Iowa’s economy.

HF 2399 encourages utilities to undertake studies related to the possibility of expanding nuclear power in Iowa; doing so with only a limited cost to rate payers and with the Iowa Utilities Board providing oversight. The bill also modifies existing law related to electricity generation and to switching existing coal-based plants to other fuel sources. Utilities will be allowed to enter into rate-making in order to pay for investments that may lead to lower carbon emissions from current plants. This opens the door for plants to switch from coal to natural gas, add “carbon capture” to existing plants, and add gas or biomass as a primary source of fuel for these plants.

This bill gives Iowa utilities and consumers more tools to make decisions on our energy future. The study will give us a clear idea of what the future for nuclear and alternative energies may hold in Iowa. From the $100 million Power Fund, to wind energy, to the Office of Energy Independence; we are building our own future in energy production. The new energy economy is already creating good paying jobs for Iowans. We are proving that environmental protection and economic growth can and should be tied together.

Thank you again for contacting our office. Please do not hesitate to contact us in the future with your questions and concerns.

Sincerely,