INDReporter

'The Future of Electric Power in Lafayette'

by Patrick Flanagan

The public is invited to a Dec. 6 community forum focused on the future of Lafayette's electric grid and the expected role alternative energies will play going forward.

Electric power and its future in Lafayette will be the focus of a public forum next week at the Southside Library on Johnston Street.

The event, scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 6, is the second in a series of community forums being sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Lafayette and the Sierra Club Acadian Group.

The speaker for next week's forum will be Lafayette resident Simon Mahan, a renewable energy manager for the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy.  According to Southern Alliance's website, Mahan is responsible for promoting alternatives like wind and solar energy.

The discussion comes as Louisiana's renewable energy industry awaits the outcome of a state Tax Credit Commission report to be submitted to the Legislature during next year's session. The commission's recommendation likely will play a key role in determining the fate of the hundreds of tax credits offered by the state, including the Wind and Solar Tax Credit, which currently provides a 50 percent payback on residential solar systems of up to $12,500.

Next Thursday's event will be from 6-8:30 p.m. inside the Southside Library at 6101 Johnston St.