Oregon Democrats Urge Trump Administration to Stop Undermining Pacific Northwest’s Power Grid
Lawmakers’ letter to Trump: “If the administration’s goal is truly to ensure reliable, secure, and affordable energy, then why are you actively dismantling the most effective and self-sustaining power system in the country?”
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley along with U.S. Reps. Suzanne Bonamici, Val Hoyle, Andrea Salinas, Janelle Bynum, and Maxine Dexter said today they are calling on the Trump administration to pay heed to concerns raised by Bonneville Power Administration workers that major and illegal job cuts at the agency will destabilize the power grid in Oregon and throughout the Pacific Northwest.
“The weight of this destabilization will bear down on the entire region, most heavily in rural areas that rely on public utilities purchasing BPA power,” the Oregon lawmakers wrote in their letter to Donald Trump. “Your administration's directives to simultaneously buy out workers and freeze hiring has resulted in the resignation of approximately 200 employees, the rescinding of 90 new job offers, and the looming layoff of up to 400 probationary employees. We recognize that the Department of Energy has recently granted BPA’s request to reinstate 89 probationary employees. Although this action provides some needed stability, it does not fully mitigate the substantial risks introduced by prior workforce reductions.”
“Employees on the ground are already warning that these actions will make it nearly impossible to strengthen and expand the grid as needed,” the lawmakers wrote of the Trump job cuts. “Instead, BPA will be forced into “damage control” mode, struggling just to “keep the lights on.” This is not speculation; it is the reality voiced by those who operate our energy infrastructure every day.”
The letter from the seven Oregon Democrats follows a letter last month from Wyden and Merkley that raised similar concerns about how the deep job cuts at BPA threaten the reliability of the electrical grid that serves millions of families and businesses in the Pacific Northwest.
“If the administration’s goal is truly to ensure reliable, secure, and affordable energy, then why are you actively dismantling the most effective and self-sustaining power system in the country,” they wrote. “Mr. President, the energy security of the Pacific Northwest -- and the rural communities that depend on BPA’s services -- cannot be treated as an afterthought. The decisions your administration has made in haste will have lasting consequences for millions of Americans. We urge you to reconsider these damaging cuts before we face an energy crisis of your making.”
The entire letter is here.
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