Statement from Senator Looney on Retirement of CSCU President Mark Ojakian
Today, Senate President Pro Tempore Martin M. Looney (D-New Haven) released the following statement regarding the announcement of the retirement of CSCU President Mark Ojakian:
“Mark Ojakian has had a truly outstanding career in Connecticut’s government and public service. Especially as Chief of Staff to former Governor Malloy and for the past five years as President of the State College and University system, he has been a visionary and creative problem solver and a steady hand in times of turmoil and challenge.
“Mark’s vision has always focused on the urgency of creating an enhanced educational environment for the tens of thousands of students he serves and it was always a pleasure to work with him toward that end. I believe he has pointed a path to sustained success, and I am gratified that Chair Matt Fleury and the state Board of Regents for Higher Education will continue his commitment to student achievement, social justice, debt free community college, preparation to compete in a demanding economy, and other critical initiatives.
“Mark, my friend, enjoy a well deserved but too early retirement!”
Senator Needleman, Legislative Leaders of the Energy & Technology Committee Plan Public Hearing
Senator Needleman, Legislative Leaders of the Energy & Technology Committee Plan Public Hearing
Ask Eversource’s CEO to Participate
The legislative leaders of the Energy & Technology Committee, led by Senate Chair State Senator Norm Needleman (D-Essex), co-chair State Representative David Arconti (D-Danbury) and Ranking Members Senator Paul Formica (R-East Lyme) and Representative Charles Ferraro (R-West Haven), sent a communication to Eversource’s CEO, James J. Judge asking him to participate in a public hearing they plan to hold to address rate increases and storm response.
Lawmakers, state leaders and residents have expressed disappointment and frustration over Eversource’s delivery rate increases and their poor handling of power outages during Storm Isaias.
In the letter, the bipartisan legislative leaders wrote, “In consideration of Storm Isaias and recent delivery rate increases, the Connecticut General Assembly’s Energy and Technology committee will be conducting a hearing on Eversource and its affiliates. The scope of the hearing will cover Eversource’s storm management response, delivery charges, initiatives to improve the grid, and investments made in linemen.”
“Our hopes are to strengthen residents’ confidence in Eversource, prevent further exorbitant rate increases, and strengthen storm preparedness. We respectfully request your attendance at the hearing and look forward to working collaboratively together on behalf of Eversource customers,” they concluded.
The date for the public hearing will be announced once all the details are finalized.
Senator Abrams Tours Damage Caused by Tropical Storm Isaias in Cheshire with Governor Lamont, Congressman Blumenthal, District and Town Leaders
Senator Abrams Tours Damage Caused by Tropical Storm Isaias in Cheshire with Governor Lamont, Congressman Blumenthal, District and Town Leaders
State Senator Mary Daugherty Abrams (D- Meriden, Middlefield, Rockfall, Middletown, Cheshire) on Monday toured Cheshire with Governor Ned Lamont, U.S. Congressman Richard Blumenthal, and local town and state officials including State Representatives Liz Linehan (D-Cheshire), Craig Fishbein (R-Wallingford) and Lezlye Zupkus (R-Prospect), Cheshire Town Manager Sean Kimball, Cheshire Town Council Chairman Rob Oris and Cheshire Councilman Jim Jinks to view damage caused by Tropical Storm Isaias that still has yet to be fully cleaned up.
“I am thankful to the line crews that worked tirelessly over the last week to repair storm damage, and I am thankful to the many public works, utilities and town employees and officials, not to mention members of the community, who were able to mitigate the worst of the storm,” said Sen. Abrams. “In contrast, Eversource’s response and reaction to this storm, after past disasters saw the company pledge to improve its practices, were not only unacceptable but highly questionable. Those of us who remember the snowstorm of 2011 and Hurricanes Irene and Sandy know Eversource has a history of poor performance during local disasters. When United Illuminating was able to achieve substantial restoration almost half a week before Eversource, that means one company serving Connecticut knew Isaias would be as bad as it was, while the other was caught flat-footed. The people of Connecticut deserve answers to the many questions remaining, especially as more than 73,000 Eversource customers still lack power as of Monday afternoon.”
Touring local properties including a Cheshire home that saw severe damage from the storm’s high winds and toppled trees, with tree trunks and branches strewn across the property and the occupants still needing to run a generator nearly a week after Isaias departed, the officials decried the slow, unacceptable response to the storm from Eversource still leaving tens of thousands without power nearly a week after it departed while noting towns and the state, not to mention public works crews, were able to assist each other when facing the lack of urgency.
According to data provided by Town Manager Kimball, Cheshire’s police dispatch responded to 640 emergency 911 calls on Tuesday as the storm arrived and departed, the amount it normally receives in an entire month. For some time, Cheshire also handled 911 calls from Southington, Bristol and parts of Plainville, he said. The Fire Department responded to 113 calls for service while Public Works responded to more than 42 roads with trees on wires and 60 blocked roads in total, though many roads could not be reopened without wires being confirmed de-energized.
Cheshire’s fast response shows the resiliency that most Connecticut communities showed in light of the slowed response of Eversource. Within 24 hours, the town had a charging, cooling and WiFi center at Highland School used by more than 600 residents. Town officials including the police, fire, public works and human services departments and board of education helped keep the town’s people safe during the disaster, Kimball said.
Senator Lesser Thrilled Rocky Hill Ferry Will Resume Operations
Senator Lesser Thrilled Rocky Hill Ferry Will Resume Operations
State Senator Matt Lesser (D-Middletown) is thrilled that the nation’s oldest continuously operating ferry service that crosses the Connecticut River, the Rocky Hill – Glastonbury Ferry, will resume operations following last weeks Tropical Storm Isaias. Operations will resume tomorrow, August 11, 2020. The utility company said power will be restored by today, August 10. Following restored power, crews can go remove the trees and debris left from the storm which cannot be done until the utility work is done.
“I am excited that residents still have the chance to use the Rocky Hill – Glastonbury Ferry,” said Sen. Lesser. “After the terrible storm caused damage and thousands of power outages across the state, at least crews were able to remove the damage done and get the ferry back up and running.”
The service had been suspended as crews worked to clean up downed trees and wires from last weeks storm. The ferry will resume it’s normal schedule through the rest of the summer.
Senator Needleman Calls For Resignation of Eversource CEO As Cleanup from Tropical Storm Isaias Continues for Fourth Day
Senator Needleman Calls For Resignation of Eversource CEO As Cleanup from Tropical Storm Isaias Continues for Fourth Day
Today, as cleanup continues for the fourth day after Tropical Storm Isaias caused extensive damage across the state, State Senator Norm Needleman (D-Essex) is calling for the resignation of Eversource CEO James J. Judge. Sen. Needleman, the Senate Chair of the Energy and Technology Committee, is assisting post-storm cleanup efforts, both in his capacity as State Senator and as First Selectman of Essex, helping all of his towns. After several days, there are still dozens of blocked roads and thousands of customers without power in his district and hundreds of blocked roads and hundreds of thousands of customers without power statewide.
“When Eversource requested hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years to make improvements to the state’s electric grid, it’s easy to ask where that money went, seeing the response to Tropical Storm Isaias,” said Sen. Needleman. “This is an epic failure on the part of Eversource, but it has been decades in the making, with a dwindling on-the-ground workforce and a desire to create an almost-virtual company. Eversource has brought us to the point where we no longer have in-state resources to manage anything but the most minor event. This has been a deliberate attempt to reduce their on-the-ground workforce in favor of executive compensation and shareholder value. The rate-payers of Connecticut deserve better, especially given the outrageously high rates we pay for energy distribution services in this state.”
“As a business owner myself, I know accountability starts at the top, and Eversource CEO James J. Judge needs to be held accountable for his company’s completely unacceptable preparation for, and reaction to, this storm. While Judge made $19.8 million last year, one of five Eversource executives who made a collective $40 million, his company was caught completely flat-footed, with hundreds of thousands still without power several days after the storm. In comparison, United Illuminating will have substantial restoration completed by the end of Saturday and Eversource is predicting substantial restoration by Tuesday at midnight. In Connecticut, we know storms happen, but what’s the point when you don’t prepare enough crews to respond to them?”
What is even more troublesome is that after a meeting with Governor Ned Lamont shortly after the storm, Mr. Judge refused to speak with reporters, sending out a spokesperson instead. Eversource has been widely criticized in the wake of Tropical Storm Isaias, as it has been in the past for its response to similar storms. What has made this even more devastating is their severe underestimation of this storm. They were not prepared at all. This comes as Eversource has, in recent years, requested frequent price increases to support a mitigation process intended to prevent the exact poor response we still see today. In the early 2010s, Eversource drew criticism for inadequate preparations for several major storms; ten years later, not much has changed.
Senator James Maroney To Propose Legislation To Give Utility Payers Relief in Response to Power Outages
Senator James Maroney To Propose Legislation To Give Utility Payers Relief in Response to Power Outages
State Senator James Maroney (D-Milford) is planning to propose legislation following Tuesday’s Tropical Storm Isais. Sen. Maroney is calling upon United Illuminating to provide credits to ratepayers and reduce delivery rates on residents’ electric bills. Following Tuesday’s storm, thousands of people are still without power. It has been three full days since power has been knocked out and customers do not deserve to be in the dark especially those who need power for their medication and those who are elderly.
“The lack of quick and effective response is obscene,” said Sen. Maroney. “They just want to blame PURA instead of taking responsibility of not being prepared to handle a storm. Proposing legislation to give credit to ratepayers will help reduce delivery costs some are paying that were placed on their bills before Hurricane Irene hit in 2011. Since they have requested rate hikes for vegetative management so something like this wouldn’t happen, where did that money go? The rate payers deserve relief.”
Senator Maroney is working with Senator Norm Needleman (D-Essex) who is the Senate Chairman of the legislature’s Energy and Technology Committee to figure out why crews were not prepared ahead of time to bring power back to residents in the state in a more timely manner.
Senator Abrams Questions Eversource, Thanks Essential Line Crews As Power Outages After Tropical Storm Isaias Continue for Fourth Day
Senator Abrams Questions Eversource, Thanks Essential Line Crews As Power Outages After Tropical Storm Isaias Continue for Fourth Day
Today, State Senator Mary Daugherty Abrams (Meriden, Middlefield, Rockfall, Middletown, Cheshire) questioned Eversource’s response to Tropical Storm Isaias as cleanup after the storm entered its fourth day. More than 700,000 people across Connecticut lost power due to the destructive tropical storm, but 415,834 Eversource customers had not yet gotten power back by Friday morning, more than 48 hours after Isaias departed the state.
“Power outages are understandable in the event of extreme weather, but not to this degree,” Sen. Abrams said. “As of 11 A.M. today, 81 percent of Middlefield, 65 percent of Cheshire, 14 percent of Middletown and 13 percent of Meriden still were without power, three days after the storm hit. With recent media reports indicating Eversource drastically underestimated the potential impacts of Tropical Storm Isaias and what appears to be a significantly slowed response to the storm, Eversource owes the public answers as to why its response to this storm has been so lacking.”
“With that said, I do wish to thank the hard-working line crews and essential workers tirelessly working to bring the lights back on across Connecticut. Local public works departments and crews from not only our state but mutual aid from others assist with removing trees, clearing roads and bringing Connecticut back to full strength. Their hard work does not go unappreciated.”
Tropical Storm Isaias brought winds of more than 60 miles per hour to Connecticut during its peak, at one point knocking out power to more than 700,00 Connecticut residents. However, days later, that figure remained over 400,000, indicating a muted, slowed response to the significant storm from Eversource.
As 38 Percent Of His District Is Still Without Power, Sen. Anwar Meets with Governor Lamont, South Windsor Officials to Survey Response
As 38 Percent Of His District Is Still Without Power, Sen. Anwar Meets with Governor Lamont, South Windsor Officials to Survey Response
State Senator Saud Anwar and Governor Ned Lamont greet with a hygienic elbow-tap
With 38 percent of his Senate District still without power as of Thursday afternoon due to damages from Tropical Storm Isaias, State Senator Saud Anwar (D-South Windsor) today met with Governor Ned Lamont with the rest of the South Windsor delegation including South Windsor Mayor Andrew Paterna, State Representative Tom Delnicki (R-South Windsor), Town Manager Michael Maniscalco and members of the South Windsor Town Council in South Windsor’s Emergency Operations Center. Sen. Anwar advocated for the state to do all it can in spurring recovery efforts, especially as nearly 20,000 residents of his district still struggle with extended power outages.
“More than 8,000 people in East Hartford don’t have power as of Thursday afternoon, and nearly 60 percent of East Windsor Eversource customers haven’t had power in two days,” Sen. Anwar said. “These aren’t numbers; these are people. People who are struggling with medical equipment, food security, high summer heat and frustrating humidity, to name just a few possible problems they face. What’s worse is many more are likely struggling to work from home with the requirements of the COVID-19 pandemic, and what’s worse than that is they don’t know when that power will return. I’m grateful that Governor Lamont joined us today to review the response in South Windsor, but as nearly 40 percent of my district is without power, and 40 percent of the state still is powerless, I hope he can quickly spur change across the state.”
Governor Lamont joined the South Windsor leaders to review the town’s response to the storm at the Emergency Operations Center near Town Hall, installed while Sen. Anwar was Mayor of the town. The officials reviewed details regarding local and statewide recovery efforts in the town, though Sen. Anwar was similarly focused on cleanup efforts in his district as a while.
At the peak of the storm’s damage, just under half of all Eversource customers in Connecticut were without power; on Thursday, that number remained around 40 percent. Officials have criticized the utility company’s response to Isaias, with many town leaders across the state citing a sluggish response and unpreparedness before the storm heavily contributing to current outages.
As of Thursday afternoon, 3,696, or 58.6 percent, of East Windsor Eversource customers were without power; South Windsor had 4,407 customers, or 35.97 percent, powerless; Ellington saw 2,723 customers or 35.4 percent experiencing outages; and East Hartford had 8,143 customers, or 35 percent, without power.
From left, Governor Lamont, State Representative Tom Delnicki, Senator Anwar and South Windsor Town Manager Michael Maniscalco discuss storm response in South Windsor’s Emergency Operations Center.
Senator James Maroney Questions Electric Company’s Response Efforts Following Tropical Storm Isaias
Senator James Maroney Questions Electric Company’s Response Efforts Following Tropical Storm Isaias
Today, State Senator James Maroney (D-Milford) submitted a letter to The United Illuminating Company questioning their response efforts following Tropical Storm Isaias. The storm left thousands of people without power throughout the towns Orange, West Haven, Milford, and Woodbridge, which United Illuminating services. Senator Maroney is looking for answers after concerns have been raised following a lack of response effort made by the electric company.
Following Tuesdays storm, almost 60% of Orange, 55% of Woodbridge, 36% of Milford, and 8% of West Haven are still without power.
The letter was sent to the President and CEO of The United Illuminating Company from Senator Maroney.
See below for the full text of the letter.
August 6, 2020
Mr. Tony Marone
President & CEO
The United Illuminating Company
100 Marsh Hill Road
Orange, CT 06477
Dear Mr. Marone,
I write to you today regarding the current response by The United Illuminating Company to repair damage done during Tropical Storm Isaias. The lack of a quick and effective response is concerning to me and my constituents who have been expressing their concerns to my office.
As the Senator for the 14th state Senate District, all my cities and towns are serviced by The United Illuminating Company (Orange, West Haven, Milford, and Woodbridge), my constituents and I would like to understand why there has been such a lack of communication prior to the event and afterwards on restoration efforts. One of the primary concerns I have, and my constituents have, is the impact this is having to our seniors and most vulnerable populations during the heat of the summer and a pandemic. Many of these customers use medical devices that require electricity, need access to elevators, use well water, or need reprieve from the heat.
As I write this, almost 60% of Orange, 55% of Woodbridge, 36% of Milford, and 8% of West Haven are without power.
How can the United Illuminating Company have such a poor response to a well forecasted tropical storm? What has the company done over the past decade to harden critical infrastructure and increase restoration times and why did those efforts fail during this storm?
My constituents deserve answers.
Respectfully,
James Maroney
State Senator, 14th Senatorial District.
Senator Anwar Writes Letter to Eversource Asking Questions About Response to Hurricane Isaias
Senator Anwar Writes Letter to Eversource Asking Questions About Response to Hurricane Isaias
Today, State Senator Saud Anwar (D-South Windsor) addressed a letter to Eversource, the electrical utility company responsible for power generation for the majority of Connecticut, asking several questions directly related to the company’s response to Hurricane Isaias. High winds that reached peaks of more than 60 miles per hour caused extensive damage across the state of Connecticut, leaving more than 600,000 Eversource customers without power.
Sen. Anwar wrote the letter acknowledging that Eversource recently drew attention for imposing an “aggressive” rate increase. “Given the recency of that increase and considering the company’s sluggish response to Hurricane Isaias, I hope I could be provided answers to the following questions,” he wrote, asking about Eversource executives’ average annual raises and for specifics regarding changes Eversource has made to improve response to extreme weather events.
Several storms in the past decade, including Hurricane Irene, Hurricane Sandy and a 2011 October snowstorm, drew lengthy repair processes and led to extensive power outages in the past. Eversource has, in recent years, raised prices to account for what it said would be an increased response to extreme weather conditions.
The letter in full is reprinted below.
August 5, 2020
Dear Eversource,
From my perspective as a former Mayor and current State Senator, it appears that Eversource’s response to Hurricane Isaias suffers in the same areas as its response to past storms, most prominently a snowstorm in October 2011. In recent weeks, Eversource also drew attention for imposing an aggressive rate increase; given the recency of that increase and considering the company’s sluggish response to Hurricane Isaias, I hope I could be provided answers to the following questions:
1. What is the average annual raise given to the top executives at Eversource?
2. Since 2011, what changes has Eversource implemented to improve its response to extreme weather events?
3. Since 2011, what capital investments has Eversource made into its electrical infrastructure in our state, particularly to harden it against extreme weather events?
4. How much has Eversource invested in the recruitment, retention, and regional coordination of its lineman workforce?
5. What preparations did Eversource make in advance of Hurricane Isaias and how did the company manage its impact?
6. What is the company doing to ensure the speedy restoration of electricity for the nearly 700,000 rate payers who lost power?
I look forward to reviewing your response.
Sincerely,
Saud Anwar