Measure to protect disputed Aquila plant moves forward

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Legislation that would allow Aquila Inc. to keep operating a Cass County plant built without local zoning approval is on its way to a vote by the House.

A committee voted 6-5 Thursday to pass the measure, overriding concerns from consumer advocates and Cass County residents that the bill rewards Kansas City-based Aquila for thumbing its nose at a court order not to build the plant.

Rep. Ed Emery, chairman of the House Special Committee on Utilities and the bill's sponsor, said he understood opponents' reservations but said the state couldn't allow a court to order to lead to the plant's destruction.

"You have two competing principles involved," said Emery, R-Lamar. "One is the principle that they should follow the law. The other is the principle of logic. Does it really help anyone to make them tear down a $140 million plant so they can rebuild it exactly where it is?"

The vote, which was along party lines, was decided by Rep. Mike Parson, R-Bolivar, who was appointed to the committee late Wednesday and who was attending his first meeting. The seat on the panel had been vacant for a year.

A seventh Republican, Rep. Will Kraus of Raytown, didn't vote.

Committee members approved two identically worded measures, both of which would expand the powers of the Missouri Public Service Commission, allowing the regulatory body to approve the construction of utility improvements, even after they're already built.

If passed, the legislation would effectively overturn an appellate court's decision last month that the commission overstepped its authority by giving its blessing in 2006 to the already constructed South Harper plant. Aquila has appealed the decision to the Missouri Supreme Court but would face having to remove the plant if the court doesn't take up the case or rules against the company.

"This is about the rule of law and whether companies should be allowed to ignore the courts," said Rep. Jake Zimmerman, D-St. Louis County, who voted against the two bills.

Lawmakers, faced with criticism that the measure would undermine utility regulation across the state, added provisions to limit its applicability to Aquila's case, such as making the change apply only to utility improvements in certain first-class counties, such as Cass, and requiring the law to expire in a year.

Emery also agreed to require the Public Service Commission to consider local zoning plans before approving the location of power plants and to hold at least one public hearing in the county where a plant would be built.

He said he sympathized with neighbors whose lives are being inconvenienced by the plant near Peculiar, but he said he had to think of the 52,000 Aquila customers who benefit from the plant, designed to provide power during periods of peak energy demand.

"This is not an easy decision, but it's a decision we are being forced to take," Emery said.

Parson said he was briefed on both sides' positions and voted his conscience.

"It's a complicated issue," he said. "Whichever side you voted for, it was a tough decision."

Cass County's two representatives, Republican Brian Baker and Democrat Luke Scavuzzo, said the measure will face stiff resistance once it reaches the House floor. Scavuzzo said the committee's approval Thursday was "just the opening skirmish in the battle against this misguided legislation."

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Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com