Our current energy system is ruled by for-profit oil and gas companies, and for-profit utility corporations like Rochester Gas & Electric (RG&E). As a result, we pay expensive energy bills while the continued use of fossil fuels pushes us towards catastrophic environmental damage that jeopardizes our futures. For decades, Rochester residents have suffered rate hikes, shut offs in winter, power outages caused by a disastrously maintained grid, and poor service so that RG&E's shareholders can pocket millions in profit every year.
By signing this petition, I support the call for an energy system that meets the needs of our communities instead of meeting the greed of distant investors and CEOs. Instead of the greedy RG&E corporation overcharging us for more dirty energy, I want a local and democratic public utility based on the principles of energy Democracy:
- Affordable Rates, No More Shutoffs
- Transition to Zero Greenhouse Gas Emissions by 2030
- More Union Jobs and a Just Transition for Energy Workers
- Community Ownership as a Cooperative Utility, with an elected Board of Directors