According to an article in the New Hampshire Union Leader, the Northern Pass project recently proposed a $7.5 million job creation fund for Coos County in northeastern New Hampshire. The project is a proposed transmission line to carry electricity from Canadian hydropower facilities through New Hampshire into New England.
Northern Pass will provide $200,000 in seed money to start the new jobs fund, but any future funding depends on the project’s subsequent approval. The fund will receive $1 million from Northern Pass once federal and state permits are approved and construction starts, followed by $500,000 a year until total contributions reach $7.5 million. An advisory group comprised of business leaders and elected officials will administer the fund’s uses.
A Northern Pass spokesman compares the proposal to any other business’ contribution to charity or community developments, only after first generating revenues. However, opponents of the Northern Pass project say that making charity money conditional on approval of a permit “boggles our minds.”
