NORWICH, N.Y. - On Tuesday, Congressman Mike Arcuri affirmed his opposition to the New York Regional Interconnect (NYRI) power line.  Arcuri became the first elected official or candidate in 2008 to sign the STOP NYRI pledge to oppose development of the power line, his campaign said.

"I'm proud to be here today to stand with opponents of this power line -- who I have steadfastly stood with for years.  NYRI's proposal is short-sighted and poorly-planned, and threatens to run roughshod over local landowners.  I'm proud to have worked diligently to oppose the power line during my time in Congress and I will continue fighting it every step of the way," said Arcuri.

The pledge Arcuri signed reads:  

I oppose the NYRI power line project because it is bad energy policy for New York State and detrimental to the communities along its route. I will take the following actions:

- Help secure local, state and federal funding to continue fighting NYRI and overturn the NIET corridor designations.

- Work with Gov. Paterson and the NYS energy planning board to develop safe, intelligent, sustainable alternatives for our energy future that will serve the people of our state and our entire nation.

Arcuri's campaign said that since his election to Congress, Arcuri:

•  introduced two bills in the U.S. House of Representatives that would prevent NYRI from using federal eminent domain law to condemn private property along the proposed route;

• successfully amended the Rail & Public Transportation Security Act (H.R. 1401) to require the Departments of Homeland Security and Transportation to evaluate the safety and security of placing high voltage direct current electric transmission power lines along active railroad rights-of-way; this non-partisan Government Accountability Office study, obtained in the wake of the train derailment in the community of Oneida, was the first federal confirmation of the many risks associated with power line routing; 

• questioned witnesses, including a high-level Energy Department official, regarding NYRI's proposal during an April 2007 House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing;

• hosted two town hall meetings (in Norwich and New Hartford) and collected hundreds of public comment forms to submit to the DOE at their Rochester hearing on the proposed National Interest Electric Transmission Corridors;

• offered an amendment with fellow New York Representatives Maurice Hinchey (D-Hurley) and John Hall (D-Dover Plains) to prevent energy companies from using federal eminent domain power to condemn private property;

• joined with Reps. Hinchey and Hall and Senator Clinton to urge the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to dismiss a petition by NYRI requesting ratepayer subsidies for its proposed power line; and
• just earlier this month, Arcuri, Hall, and Hinchey asked the U.S. Department of Energy to include comprehensive assessments of energy congestion outside of New York City when they update the National Electric Transmission Congestion Study next year, so this information can be used to debunk claims that the NYRI project would reduce electricity congestion.

In response, Arcuri's opponent in the upcoming election, Richard Hanna, that he continues to be against NYRI's power line proposal and says the fundamental case for it has yet to be proven. 

Hanna says that last year, Arcuri failed to get legislation passed that would have postponed for one year the final designation of the Mid-Atlantic Area National Corridor (Hinchey-Wolf Amendment, vote failed 257-174, June 20, 2007) which includes the proposal

"Michael Arcuri couldn't even convince his colleagues to support an effort that would delay NYRI's project so how will he halt the proposal forever?" Richard Hanna said. "Two years have passed and we still face the same fate today as we did then. Mr. Arcuri has done nothing to stop this proposal and it is symbolic of his failed leadership in Congress."

An important issue that must be pursued is the nature of the tax incentives, which encourage the construction of these lines, Richard Hanna said. Tax incentives have corrupted the system, but they also offer us another avenue to fight this proposal, he added.

"We need to demand that special tax benefits are eliminated, thereby taking extraordinary profit out of construction," Richard Hanna said. "In our market economy, these power lines should be self-sustaining and not given special incentives. We should not be asked to subsidize our own destruction."