The Board of Directors of the Silver City Grant County Chamber of Commerce wishes to express our collective disappointment in the recent decision taken by the Hearing Examiner regarding the rate case of Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM).

A healthy utility translates into healthy community and region. When a utility invests in its infrastructure and technology, both residents and businesses benefit.

Residents understand where their electricity comes from, and they delight in knowing their household comforts, necessities and entertainment have less of a carbon footprint than a decade ago. Businesses fulfill promises every day to both their customers and employees because their operations are undergirded by dependable power, as well as cost-saving energy-efficiency programs.

What's more, the power utility is very often the foundation of a community's economic development projects, from manufacturing to data and even community support efforts. When we weaken the foundation, those projects, programs and efforts are adversely affected.

That is why the members of the Board of Directors of the Silver City Grant County Chamber of Commerce are disappointed regarding the conclusion drawn by the Hearing Examiner that recommends PNM should only recover about one-third of the cost of its investments through its rates. Such a decision, we fear, will reverberate across not just the power industry, but across the private sector. What message do we send to highly regulated industries when we mandate that their massive investments cannot be recouped?

PNM has been aggressive in reducing carbon emissions from its power production. From President Barack Obama to Governor Susana Martinez, the best approach to ensure reliable, affordable and environmentally responsible energy is an all-of-the-above approach. In fact, the 2015 State Energy Plan says: "New Mexico cannot afford to exclude any energy asset from our portfolio of development opportunities." This includes nuclear energy, which has become more widely accepted by some environmental groups as a carbon-free power source that provides continuous, base-load electricity.

PNM will shut down two coal-burning units at the San Juan Generating Station. To replace that lost capacity, PNM sought to secure a fossil-fuel alternative and purchased emission-free power from the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station. It has been reported that the Hearing Examiner's personal aversion to nuclear energy appears to be much of the reason for the disparity between PNM's rate request and the rate recommended by the Hearing Examiner. What message do we send to businesses when we punish them for good behavior?

After being in a holding pattern for nearly 30 years, the nuclear industry imagined New Mexico as home to a renewed nuclear renaissance, upon the permitting and 2010 commencement of uranium enrichment in Eunice. New Mexico is the birthplace of atomic energy, and our state has the assets and attitudes to develop the entire nuclear fuel cycle, from mining to power production to spent-fuel storage and reprocessing. With huge advancements in reactor technology, nuclear power represents a high-growth industry that could bring economy opportunity to not just New Mexico, but to developing nations, whose prosperity could be fueled by small modular reactors manufactured in New Mexico.

All that background is to say, the Hearing Examiner wishes to preclude PNM's cost recovery for electricity derived from a nuclear power plant in another state. One individual's hostile posture toward nuclear energy could devastatingly alter New Mexico's collective "welcome" to nuclear-related firms looking at the state for startup, relocation and expansion.

Commissioners, advancing New Mexico's economy and general welfare rely on your endorsement of a responsible mix of all energy sources. As utilities like PNM work to increase capacity while reducing carbon emissions with proven technologies, we must reward them - or at least not harm them - for their innovative strides. If the PRC follows the recommendation of the Hearing Examiner for this rate case, then such a decision will discourage investment and slow innovation.

As an advocate for New Mexico businesses in our community, the Silver City Grant County Chamber of Commerce expects our elected and appointed officials to treat every business as if they want it to succeed.

However, the Hearing Examiner's recommendation does not reflect this sentiment. We want to show that our state is open for business. We want to demonstrate in this case and in others that New Mexico's state regulatory bodies are fair and are fostering a business climate conducive to growth.

The Board of Directors of the Silver City Grant County Chamber of Commerce urge you to consider PNM's upcoming request for exception and help push New Mexico forward as a solid choice for investment.

Respectfully,
Dave Thomas
2016 Chairman of the Board

Scott C. Terry PCED, IOM
Chamber President - CEO