Opinion: Gas Bill "Allows the Fox to Build the Hen House."

I am appalled at Harrisburg's passage of HB 1950, which removes our local municipal authorities' power to protect our communities from natural gas drilling.

Now, instead of our locally elected councils or boards of supervisors legislating the harm that drilling does to air and water, faceless bureaucrats in Harrisburg, who don't live in our communities and who have no connection to what they will oversee, will apply industry-approved, cookie-cutter zoning regulations across this vast, geographically diverse state.

Under this new law, municipal officials who dare to impose stricter ordinances on drillers to protect their communities will face the legal wrath of our PA PUC (Public Utility Commission) who, thanks to this bill, is now doing the gas industry's dirty work at taxpayers' expense. (What a sweetheart deal for their Valentine's Day!)

It's like tying up the farmer in the corner of the barn and allowing the fox to build the hen house.

The Pennsylvania legislature went mad on Wednesday; their addiction to natural gas dollars has overwhelmed their ability to lead responsibly. I fear for Pennsylvania.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Kristin Lauersen
Newtown, PA