QUEEN’S PARK – Official Opposition NDP critic for Energy and Climate Action, Peter Tabuns (Toronto Danforth) is introducing legislation to help Ontarians save money on rising energy bills.
Tabuns’ Bill, Affordable Energy Act, 2023, is co-sponsored by MPPs Jessica Bell (University – Rosedale), Chandra Pasma (Ottawa West – Nepean), and Doly Begum (Scarborough Southwest).
“We are in a cost-of-living and climate crisis. Report after report shows that a focus on conservation and community-based distribution for renewable energy can substantially cut costs of providing energy,” said Tabuns. “It’s time for the Ford government to get serious about Ontario’s energy future and focus on making sustainable, affordable, and reliable energy more accessible for Ontarians.”
This Bill gives residents, including tenants, the tools to cut their energy usage and costs. It calls for the province to set up agencies to finance retrofitting homes and setting up distributed energy systems that will help people afford reliable and sustainable energy.
"These measures will help people access more reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy.”
ADDITIONAL QUOTES
“Ottawa residents need options to generate power closer to home and make their homes as energy efficient as possible. Practical solutions like these will ensure Ottawa residents aren’t left without options following extreme weather events in the future.” - MPP Chandra Pasma, Ottawa West - Nepean
“People are hard pressed now to cover all their bills. We must take the most cost-effective energy options and put them at the heart of our power system. This bill sets out how to do that." - MPP Doly Begum, Scarborough Southwest
“We have the technology to build a reliable and sustainable energy future in Ontario that does not leave Ontarians footing a pricey bill. If the Ford government wants a solution that works – here is one that keeps energy costs low and reduces carbon pollution.” - MPP Jessica Bell, University Rosedale
QUICK FACTS
- Ontario is looking at spending $400 billion on our electricity system over the next 25 years. Government scenarios project an increase in electricity prices by up to 30% in that time.
- In 2022, Ontario’s electricity system operator put out a study showing that providing electrical generation at or near a home, distributed energy, could substantially cut the costs of electricity in Ontario.
- The measures in the bill are new to Ontario but not elsewhere. Just last week Nova Scotia announced a Community Solar Program. Deep retrofits and community energy generation are increasingly part of the energy solutions in Europe and the US.
- This Bill creates the framework to set up large scale programs to finance and organize deep home energy retrofits, including installation of heat pumps and facilitate the implementation of distributed energy generation from homes to neighbourhoods using community energy facilities.