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Rodne bill would create
incentives for gas stations to use
generators in power outages
5th District legislator believes better disaster
preparedness is needed
State Rep. Jay Rodne,
R-North Bend, has introduced a measure that would provide incentives to
gas station owners to purchase power generators for use during
electrical outages.
House Bill 1557 would provide a business and occupation tax credit for
the purchase of alternative power generation devices to operate gasoline
service station pumps.
“A lot is made of emergency and disaster preparedness at all levels of
government. This is important – and I believe part of state government’s
responsibility is reaching out to the private sector to ensure they are
playing an important role during times of crisis,” said Rodne. “My bill
would create an incentive for gas station owners to purchase power
generators that could be used in emergencies that include power
outages.”
If passed, House Bill 1557 would take effect August 1, 2007.
“During recent storms and subsequent power outages in Western
Washington, we’ve seen gas stations that cannot pump fuel. In turn,
customers have overloaded functioning gas stations and this has led to
fuel shortages,” said Rodne. “A greater number of operating gas stations
in times of emergencies – especially power outages – is in the best
interest of everyone. My legislation is a way for state government to
encourage the private sector to be a bigger part of disaster
preparedness solutions. And we need more of these ideas. ”
The 2007 legislative session began Jan. 8 and is scheduled to run 105
days.
Rodne can be contacted at (360) 786-7852 or rodne.jay@leg.wa.gov.
For more information on Rodne, visit: http://www.houserepublicans.wa.gov/Rodne/
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