AUGUSTA – Gov. John E. Baldacci’s energy bill drew mixed reviews Wednesday, including from an original sponsor who spoke both for and against the measure.

During the daylong public hearing on LD 2041 before the Legislature’s Utilities and Energy Committee, Sen. Lois Snowe-Mello, R-Poland, spoke as a co-sponsor of the legislation and then proceeded to short-circuit one of the bill’s major components.

Snowe-Mello said she had to oppose Part D of the measure, which directs the state Public Utilities Commission to establish minimum energy efficiency standards for appliances sold in Maine not already covered by federal laws.

“When I agreed to be a co-sponsor I had not seen the appliance standard language,” she said. “While I support many of the concepts outlined in the bill that will decrease the cost of electricity in Maine, I cannot support appliance standards. … Maine people have demonstrated that if they can afford a more efficient appliance, they will buy it. The state does not need to tell them what to buy.”

Although the brunt of the legislation sought to address energy volatility, overreliance on fossil fuels, global warming, and the structure of current retail and wholesale electric markets, much of the morning discussion did not.

Instead, many of the speakers focused on the necessity of the appliance efficiency standards section of the bill, which Beth Nagusky, the governor’s energy chief, said would require the support of at least two other New England states.

“Given the number of qualifications that must be met before the commission can adopt rules for a given appliance, it is not likely that this provision will be invoked on many occasions or for many appliances,” she said. “But if there are appliances that emerge later on, this would allow us to get lowest-performing appliances out of the market.”

Rep. Peter Rines, D-Wiscasset, pointed out that while it’s nice to encourage purchasing a new energy-efficient refrigerator, everyone knows what happens to the outdated model.

“The old one winds up in the garage and so there’s been no net gain in the situation,” he said. “A rebate or incentive program for a refund to get that old unit out of the home comes to mind.”

Other key components of the bill include:

. Reducing the excise tax to 20 cents per gallon on motor fuels containing at least 2 percent biodiesel by volume.

. Directing the PUC to incorporate cost-effective energy conservation and energy efficiency resources into the standard offer service product for electricity customers.

. Directing transmission and distribution utilities to enter into long-term contracts for cost-effective energy conservation and energy efficiency.

. Setting a policy of increasing the amount of energy generated from renewable resources by 1 percent per year beginning in 2007 to reach 10 percent by 2017 and permitting the PUC to enter into long-term contracts for eligible renewable resources such as wind, solar, biomass and even nuclear power to accomplish the goal.

“We face very serious challenges – and a potential crisis – on the energy front and on the environmental front,” Nagusky said. “I recognize that the governor’s bill does not cure all of these problems, but it is a very real and important step in the right direction – a step that many other states are looking at and are taking. … Inaction is no longer an option.”

Gordon Wile of Harpswell spoke in opposition to LD 2041 and predicted the bill would “drive up consumer prices” by encouraging the pursuit of alternative energy resources “without regard to cost” under long-term contracts that could extend for two decades on the basis of forecasted energy prices.

“You on this committee certainly must know that it is impossible to do that,” Wiles said. “We cannot know in advance what those prices are going to be. … This opens the door to very high prices for customers in the future.”

But supporters of the bill, such as its lead sponsor, Rep. Ken Fletcher, R-Winslow, maintained the measure was a significant first step for lawmakers who, in recent years, have resisted efforts to make substantive changes in state energy policy. Fletcher said the state must take some kind of action to signal its willingness to reduce dependency on fossil fuels and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

“For electricity generation we have found ourselves almost totally dependent on natural gas, which depends on whether we’ve got gas in the pipeline,” he said. “I don’t think anyone’s comfortable with that, so we’ve got to get out of this mess. This bill doesn’t solve the total problem, but it does say that we are heading in a responsible direction.”