CORRECTION

Rick Martinez's column on this page Wednesday left out the "Hill" in a mention of North Carolina's Mars Hill College. Go Lions!

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It pays to have friends, even if you have to pay to get them. That's the lesson I've learned from watching the steamrollering of residential electricity consumers by the electric utilities as the companies have pushed for the General Assembly's lightening-quick passage of Senate Bill 3.

This piece of legislation is destined to be the most comprehensive energy bill in the state's history. It's also the most complicated. But in a little over a week, SB 3 -- which had already passed the Senate -- cleared three House committees and two of the House readings needed for passage.

Unbelievably, on Monday the House spent as much time and more passion on passing resolutions honoring Mars College's 150th anniversary and acknowledging the contribution of Scots to North Carolina than it did debating energy legislation that will add many millions to the electric bills of residential customers.

SB 3 does this in two ways. Its renewable energy mandates will cost at least $300 million per year, according to a state Utilities Commission consultant. As I've written previously, that's the only cost we know. The financial bonanza for the electric utilities is still unknown. Their windfall will come through provisions that allow them to collect design financing and construction costs for coal and nuclear power plants upfront from ratepayers.

Today, shareholders bear that burden. How much this shifting of financial risk will cost North Carolinians isn't known -- other than it could be massive, particularly if the plant is nuclear. A utility, under some circumstances, would be able to cancel a nuke plant and still recover costs.

Proponents of the bill say there are caps on the amount a residential bill can rise. But those caps apply only to the renewable energy portion of the legislation. There are no caps on the power plant-related costs the utilities want to collect.

SB 3 also phases out the sales taxes paid on electricity by farmers and manufacturers. Guess who gets to make up those costs? Other than guaranteed higher electric bills, the rest of us get next to nothing out of SB 3.

How could this happen? Aren't legislators supposed to be looking out for us? Hah! Monday's floor debate unwittingly disclosed how closely tied to special-interest groups this bunch is. Legislator after legislator rose to deride the imperfections of SB 3, but said they were going to vote for it anyway, based on the benefits it bestows to environmentalists, farmers, manufacturers or the utilities.

From what I heard, only Reps. Susan Fisher and Paul Luebke pointed out the stark reality that the costs of this bill disproportionately fall on residential ratepayers. Maybe that's because they can afford to be candid. According to a Democracy North Carolina report on Duke and Progress Energy PAC contributions, Fisher received only $1,500 from those utilities in 2003-04 and none in 2005-06. Luebke was shut out in both time periods.

Both legislators voted no on SB 3. Of the 11 representatives who voted against the bill, eight didn't receive any Duke or Progress Energy PAC contributions during those two cycles. Reps. Fisher and Edgar Starnes received $1,500 and Rep. Bryan Holloway got $1,000.

By comparison, Rep. Drew Saunders was the biggest House recipient of Duke and Progress Energy's largess. He accepted $34,000 during the 2003-04 and 2005-06 cycles, according to Democracy North Carolina. Reps. Harold Brubaker and former Speaker Jim Black were tied for second at $32,000. The Saunders and Brubaker contributions are significant because they are the chairman and vice-chairman, respectively, of the Public Utilities Committee. And by the way, both men voted yes on SB 3.

The urgency surrounding SB 3 is baloney. If it fails to become law, North Carolina will continue to prosper, as it has without the legislation. The goals of the bill are legitimate, but its unanswered questions beg for an in-depth study commission. The utilities are playing the urgency card because they know that no politician wants to go into next year's election having voted recently for a measure that could significantly raise electric bills.

Maybe the 103 House members who voted for SB 3 honestly believe the bill is what's best for the state. But given Democracy North Carolina's figures, the skeptic in me suspects they're protecting their pocketbooks rather than ours.