COLUMBUS — Would Ohioans, with enough financial incentive, be willing to hand over control of their smart thermostats to utilities to allow them to remotely reduce residential and small business electricity consumption during times of peak energy demand?
House Bill 427, introduced on Thursday by state Rep. Roy Klopfenstein (R., Haviland), could prove to be a contest between Ohioans’ need for relief from rising energy prices and any concern they might have about Big Brother.
“Demand response programs have proven to be a vital tool for our large commercial users, and it’s important that similar programs are made available to residential and small commercial users,” Mr. Klopfenstein said. “These programs will ease the strain on our energy grid and save money for all Ohioans.”…