keeping the lights on: forcing the New England governors' energy plan out of the back room.

• Position: PROGRESS REPORT

THE PROBLEM

After decades of work by CLF, obsolete coal and nuclear power plants could soon disappear from New England's energy mix--and the rest of the country is beginning to follow suit. The question now is whether the region's energy (and climate) future will be built on clean energy or the drawnout use of fossil fuels, like natural gas. The answer will resound for generations, here and throughout the entire country.

Last December, when New England's governors announced they were working together on a regional energy plan, hopes were high that it would prioritize clean, more efficient sources that would be good for the economy and the planet. The plan that was revealed just a month later, however, was one instead built on massive new gas pipelines and imports of Canadian hydropower--all to be financed with billions of dollars from residents and businesses.

CLF IN ACTION

CLF has a long history of working with industry, regulators, and government to push for clean energy solutions in New England. Concerned that this risky energy plan was being hatched out of the public eye, CLF and others repeatedly requested information from state agencies about its development. When those requests went unanswered, CLF filed public records requests in each New England state, seeking documents from state agencies and the New England States Committee on Electricity INESCOE), a publicly funded regional entity through which the states are advancing their plan.

PROGRESS

By early July, CLF had obtained a fraction of the documents requested. NESCOE, despite acting on behalf of state governments, claimed it was not subject to public records laws and refused to provide any documents. Only the state agencies in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont responded with meaningful documents.

Those documents revealed troubling trends: an outright hostility to conducting the planning process in the open; discussions held behind closed doors and alongside industry representatives--who stand to profit most from the plan; resistance to considering smaller, more affordable options; and a total failure to address how the proposed influx of natural gas and hydropower would impact the region's clean energy and climate goals.

That state officials seemed so willing to risk the public's money, the region's...