Renewable power

Re “Power brokers,” editorial, Nov. 9

Your recent editorial on renewable energy was correct in some regards: Increasing the renewable power flowing through the state’s energy grid is vital -- it lowers greenhouse gases and increases energy independence. The Assembly will make renewable-portfolio-standard legislation a top priority, and Assemblyman Paul Krekorian (D-Los Angeles) will continue to lead bipartisan legislators working on that issue.

But you missed the mark in claiming renewable power was delayed somehow by a “rocky” transition from Speaker Fabian Nunez to me. Ours has been one of the capitol’s smoothest transitions ever. You also wrongly predict that the legislation could be harmed by Assembly-Senate conflict. Incoming Senate leader Darrell Steinberg and I pledged to work together closely and have been doing so.

Achieving renewable power and its benefits -- a far more complex endeavor than your editorial suggests -- will be one of the top areas of our joint consideration and cooperation.

Karen Bass

Speaker of the Assembly

Sacramento

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The failure of SB 411 should surprise no one. When the governor can command the sun to shine at midnight, the Santa Ana winds to blow every day and pigs to fly, maybe we can get 33% of our power from renewables by 2020.

If he pleads that it’s beyond his pay grade, then maybe it’s time to call in the clergy.

Richard J. Stegemeier

Anaheim

The writer is a former chairman and CEO of Unocal.