Opinion: State legislators missed on addressing a real crisis

As the dust settles on the 2015 Missouri legislative session, it’s clear our focus was lost on what moves Missouri forward.  

Ordinarily there is the typical last-minute rush to push legislation through to the procedural finish line. However, in the usual sprint at the end of the legislative session, or in this case crawl, opportunities were missed to address real, impending issues that would benefit our state.

At this very moment, much of Missouri’s energy infrastructure nears the end of its life cycle. Without upgrades, the equipment that generates and distributes our electricity becomes less efficient and is more susceptible to failure.

Failing energy infrastructure puts Missouri’s most vulnerable at serious risk; we’ve already seen underground fires from old substations shutdown busy business districts. Blackouts could result in a lack of heat in the harshest winter months or lack of cool in the dog days of summer.

Yet somehow, legislation that updates Missouri energy policy to encourage investment that protects and upgrades our grid, once again, did not reach final passage.

With this session behind us, and as members head home to settle back into their respective districts, I ask we pay special attention to the conveniences we all enjoy as a result of a stable, affordable supply of electricity.

We are very fortunate in Missouri to pay as little as we do for electricity. It’s important members and constituents alike do everything possible to preserve Missouri’s energy future.

Let’s not wait until aging infrastructure becomes a crisis that puts Missourians in harm’s way before we upgrade our energy policies and update our energy infrastructure. Let’s make sure we see this impending crisis as part of the mad dash to the legislative finish line in the final days of session next year.

—Irl Scissors, executive director, Missourians for a Balanced Energy Future