The Rio Grande Foundation has firmly and repeatedly pushed back against the organized efforts of radical environmentalists and their left-wing politician allies (like Sen. Martin Heinrich) to get rid of natural gas for heating and cooking in peoples’ homes.
But Heinrich was recently joined in his opposition to natural gas in the home by left-wing New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas. How so? Balderas just signed the State of New Mexico on to an Amicus brief in support of the City of Berkeley, California in its case against the California Restaurant Association which is suing in opposition to the ban on natural gas which also applies to businesses.
Berkeley was the first city in the U.S. to approve such a law, when its City Council unanimously agreed in July 2019 to prohibit natural gas infrastructure (such as gas hookups) in any new buildings that applied for permits after Jan. 1, 2020.
Despite “representing” one of the most important natural gas producing states in the nation here in New Mexico, Balderas saw fit to sign on in support of Berkeley. Whether you are just a New Mexican who benefits from the money natural gas benefits for the State of New Mexico or whether you heat your home or cook with natural gas, Balderas represents radical environmental groups, not you.
WHAT!!! are they truly trying to not only kill the economy but the cleanest and cheapest sources of heating. I’m appalled at the stupidity.
There are 29.3 kwh in a therm (100M BTUs)
1kwh of elec. costs about $.15 residential rate
Therefore 1 Therm of electricity costs $4.40; even if derated 20% for combustion efficiency it still costs $3.52.
Natural gas costs the homeowner about $.65/ therm.
Substituting electricity for NG is lunacy, even if you spend $25,000 on PV or heat pumps.
John Onstad
On another note, Martin Heinrich reported recently in a local paper that he was so proud of himself for installing a heat pump water heater in lieu of a gas unit.
He failed to mention the cost, however.
I sell them and I just quoted a 50 gallon unit installed for $8,500 and a 80 gallon unit for $10,500. The homeowner politely declined. A gas unit would cost less than $1500 installed. The heat pump unit would save him about maybe $200/year in operating costs.
Money? What’s money? Isn’t that what the govmint prints?
I cannot believe the people of northern NM vote for these men & women! Can they not see it will hurt them? Absolutely nuts!
All electric creates a single point of failure. Your electricity goes out and you have no power, no heat.
The power grid has an increasing potential of failing with increasing demands of EVs and home heating/cooking.
Doesn’t make sense from and individual perspective or a national security perspective.
We have a chance to take this state back from the nutty people who have no common sense. Please New Mexicans, vote these people out, locally as well, as state wide. Let’s live and let live and stop trying to run someone else’s life
I would really like to live in New Mexico, but the shear lack of even “common” sense rather consistently shown by elected officials even trumps the foolish waste of time here in Texas on Bathroom bills. As a gas producing state, it is the height of stupidity to not allow your heavily taxed residents to at least have the less expensive heat and cooking benefits of natural gas.
Sheesh this place, is so dang frustrating. We have this hot water in floor system with a boiler, can’t remember the name of it. Very efficient evidently. How the heck are you supposed to heat that with electricity? My parents had an all electric house in Idyllwild CA. Was so dang expensive to heat. We had an electric range in Dallas, wife hated the dang thing so we replaced with gas.
So taxing here, I call it the “Albuquerque tax”. Cameras for crime, high car insurance due to thefts, high property tax, state income tax. And to top it off you get horrible service for all of these “taxes”. Horrible police response rate, horrendous schools, terrible streets, homelessness all over, all the social ills. People just accept it too, like “that’s just the way it is”. Looks like we’ll need to install solar. Just another “Albuquerque tax”…
Thanks, the good news is that no local government, even Santa Fe has done this, yet, but people like Martin Heinrich and Balderas WOULD do it if they had the power.
Build Crack Better.