Gov. Mark Dayton
Governor Mark Dayton is brushing aside criticism that his new goal for renewable energy won’t go anywhere at the legislature. Representative Pat Garofalo said Monday, “The proposal has bipartisan opposition and lacks the votes to pass either the House of Representatives or the Senate.” The Farmington Republican argues the time for 1990s-era mandates is past, and new technologies are making all forms of energy cleaner. Governor Dayton responds, “Regardless of what Washington does, regardless of what the legislature does here, the facts are that utilities like Xcel [Energy] are leading this way.” Dayton wants lawmakers to set a goal of Minnesota getting half of its energy from renewables by 2030.