In New Hampshire, deregulation legislation has been challenged and is currently tied up in the courts. Congress also deserves credit for making progress to advance the concept of open electricity markets. Several restructuring proposals have been put forward, including a plan by Representative Edward Markey of Massachusetts to open electric generation to competition. Although the federal government has jurisdiction over large portions of the electricity industry. Congress and the Clinton administration have wisely chosen to step back and allow the states to make their own decisions.
Free markets can achieve the greatest results when truly unrestrained.
For example, the practice of subsidizing power to certain regions of the country has certainly outlived its objective and is now only providing an unfair advantage to one region at the expense of taxpayers from other regions. In addition, consumers in New England can benefit most from this market when there is environmental equity. All areas of the country must be held to the same health-based standards for air quality. This is critical for New England, which suffers from dirty air generated in the Midwest and South and carried into this region with the trade winds. New England desperately needs relief from the negative impact on its environment and economy.