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From:
Date: 2/10/01
Time: 2:45:30 PM
Pete Wilson defends his role in deregulation
SAN DIEGO (AP) -- Ex-governor Pete Wilson has no regrets about signing sweeping legislation in 1996 to deregulate California's power industry, a move his successor, Gov. Gray Davis, called "a colossal and dangerous failure."
Wilson believes history will vindicate him.
"Do I regret having pushed for deregulation and signing the bill? No, quite the contrary," the Republican told The San Diego Union-Tribune for Friday editions. "I take credit for having been the driving force to launch deregulation."
Wilson, vice president of a Beverly Hills venture capital firm, said his Democratic successor should be more aggressive in building new power plants.
"I was fully expecting ... the use of his emergency powers to do everything possible to accelerate the siting and construction of new generating capacity," Wilson said about Davis' State of the State speech last month.
Davis' spokesman Steve Maviglio disputed Wilson, saying the governor has begun streamlining the permit process to speed power plant construction.
Davis has credited himself with licensing nine new power plants since 1999, five of which are under construction. But Wilson said those projects were already in the works before Davis took office.
Wilson defended his decision, saying in 1996 there was excess supply, and manufacturers complained about the high cost of doing business in California.
"That situation obviously invited creation of a competitive free market in hopes of providing choice, competition and driving prices down," he said.
What he said he didn't anticipate was the explosion of the energy-gobbling Internet economy, which drove up electricity demand.