Oct. 27--Dusty Johnson is headed to Washington to rail against climatechange legislation proposed in the Senate.

He expects a hostile audience, but he's angry enough that it doesn't seem to matter.

"This won't be the first time I've tilted at windmills," he said Monday in an interview with The Daily Republic.

Johnson, a Mitchell resident and chairman of the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission, will testify Wednesday before the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works in Washington, D.C., about the potential effect of proposed carbon-regulating legislation on South Dakotans.

The committee will hold a three-day hearing on the Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act, also known as the Kerry-Boxer bill. The legislation seeks to cut greenhousegas emissions -- which are thought to be contributing to global warming -- to a level 20 percent below 2005 emissions by 2020.

If the legislation becomes law, companies will be required to obtain government permits allowing them to emit greenhouse gases. The number of permits would be reduced over time, and companies would be allowed to buy and sell them.

Johnson opposes the legislation. He thinks it will require South Dakota utility companies to buy permits from companies in bigger states, resulting in profits for those out-ofstate companies and higher energy costs for South Dakotans.

"I understand the desire to reduce our carbon footprint, and I think we should," Johnson said in a PUC news release. "But the climatechange legislation pending is not the right approach."

The PUC estimates that the legislation would increase many South Dakotans' energy bills by 25 percent as soon as 2012. That's an estimated annual impact of $250 million statewide.

Johnson claims that the legislation would give California 12 million more carbon allowances than it needs for compliance with targeted emission levels, while South Dakota would face a 3 millionallowance shortfall.

"This bill is blatantly unfair to the Midwest, and is more about politics than the environment," Johnson said in the PUC news release. "Rather than deal with our carbon problems by investing in energy efficiency and new technologies, this bill focuses on transferring wealth. ... California would be able to turn around and sell their excess credits to South Dakota, realizing tens of millions of dollars in windfall profits."

Testifying before the Committee on Environment and Public Works will give Johnson, a Republican, the opportunity to speak directly to one of the bill's authors, Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., who chairs the committee.