LITTLE ROCK — Republican Bart Hester of Cave Springs says he is looking forward to a workshop on the energy industry in Arkansas because he wants to learn as much as he can about issues that affect the state before he is sworn in as a state senator in January.
Hester, who defeated GOP state Rep. Tim Summers of Bentonville in the May primary and has no Democratic opposition in November for the District 1 seat in Northwest Arkansas, is one of about 40 lawmakers and legislative candidates signed up for the Energy, Jobs and the Economy workshop to be held this month at four locations across the state.
Put on by the Applied Sustainability Center at the University of Arkansas Walton College of Business, the workshops will explore the economic impact and job creation potential in Arkansas of the advance energy sector, including energy efficiency, renewable energy and alternative fuels.
“I’m very new to politics and I feel like I have a responsibility to educate myself as much as possible on every issue before I go down to Little Rock,” he said. “When this was offered, especially very close to home, it was very affordable.”
The workshop is underwritten in part by the Arkansas Advanced Energy Foundation and the Arkansas Energy Office, and has a $25 registration fee.
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“These workshops are an opportunity for policy makers and business leaders to examine what is and what can be in the advanced energy sector,” AAEF Executive Director Steve Patterson said.
Hester, a conservative who signed the Americans for Prosperity’s no tax pledge, said he plans to keep an open mind when attending the workshop, but he admitted he would more likely support energy programs that have a track record of success.
“I will certainly be looking at all of it,” he said. “Just to be a good representative, a good steward, you want to look at all areas that can be improved. But I think from my perspective … I would be more apt to support tax incentives for something we know is there and that is proven to be sustainable.”
He said the natural gas industry has proven itself, while a number of windmill farms across the country have received government subsidies but never succeeded and benefits from biofuel incentives are still unclear.
“But, I’m also not opposed to trying new things because you have got to fail sometimes to find the good ones,” he said.
The UA Center for Business and Economic Research issued a report in June that estimated $18.5 billion in economic activity and state and local taxes from natural gas exploration in the Fayetteville Shale play between 2008 and 2011 — exceeding initial projections in a 2008 report.
Gov. Mike Beebe encouraged efforts that have brought a number of windmill-related manufacturers to the state, including LM Windpower in Little Rock, Nordex USA in Jonesboro and Beckmann Volmer in Osceola. The governor also has supported biofuel incentives.
During the workshops, participants will hear from panelists representing a range of energy companies, from electric and natural gas utilities, energy service companies, solar panel installers, wind component manufacturers and biofuels manufacturers.
Michele Halsell, managing director of the Applied Sustainability Center, said each workshop will include a tour of a work force development center or a research facility to illustrate existing resources that can help position the state as a leader in the advanced energy sector.
Among the current lawmakers planning to attend are state Sen. Jake Files, R-Fort Smith, and Rep. Uvalde Lindsey, D-Fayetteville.
“Legislators are faced with a whole lot of issues they are expected to make policy decisions on including education, transportation and health care,” Files said. “Energy is a complex issue that affects everyone in the state. This workshop will help ensure that more of our elected representatives understand the challenges and the potential for economic impact that energy represents in our state.”
Lindsey said it is important for all lawmakers to have a “solid grasp of the potential to create jobs for our citizens and enhance for our energy security through advanced energy.”
Along with the July 10 workshop in Bentonville, other workshops are scheduled for July 13 at Pulaski Technical Institute in North Little Rock; July 17 at Mid-South Community College in West Memphis, and July 24 at Henderson State University in Arkadelphia.
“This workshop will help to ensure that more of our elected representatives understand the challenges and the potential for economic impact that energy represents in our state,” Files said.
In May, Beebe and U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., both told leaders from the eight-state Delta region, that the United States must work towards energy independence and Arkansas has the necessary energy resources, and energy industry, to help.
They both spoke of the state’s abundance of natural gas in the Fayetteville Shale Play, the growth of wind-powered energy businesses in the state, development of biomass energy and the possibilities of lignite mining and oil drilling in south Arkansas.