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Patterson wants supes to oppose Proposition 16

May 23, 2010

The increasingly controversial Proposition 16 on the June 8 ballot has picked up more local opposition. County Supervisor Jim Patterson wants his colleagues to formally go on record against the PG&E financed-initiative. [Tribune]

Proposition 16, backed by PG&E to the tune of more than $30 million so far, is referred to as “The Taxpayers Right to Vote Act” on the ballot. However, the actual focus of the measure is on making it more difficult for cities to develop their own local public electricity providers by requiring a two-thirds approval of the voters first.

The move has been roundly denounced by newspapers up and down the state, including the Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, and the Tribune.

Patterson intends to introduce a resolution at Tuesday’s board meeting, arguing that Proposition 16 “is against the public interest, and a potential setback for renewable energy production.” The 5th District supervisor believes that PG&E is using the proposition to maintain a monopoly in providing electricity.

If the other county supervisors agree with Patterson, a formal resolution would be sent to the California attorney general and secretary of state.


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Chew on this for a little bit:


PGE already owns the distribution infrastructure (wires and poles). Practically speaking, any start-up utility is going to need to use PGE’s distribution to deliver their power. Will PGE get to set the price for the use of their equipment? Or will “we” (whoever we are) take control of their equipment and demand that they permit use of their infrastructure at some rate other than market rate. It’s a slippery slope.


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Cindy:


re: Raking in profits hand over fist


I am not seeing it. Looking at their stock price on “finance.yahoo.com,” the company looks almost flat compared to two years ago. I guess we could play with the data and choose their 52-week low price, and compare it with a recent 52-week high to make your assertion true. But using that analysis, the components of the DJIA have also “rakes in the profits hand over fist,” and we all know that’s in the middle of not happening right now.


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I have spent the past 6 years disagreeing with Patterson. His opposition to Prop 16 makes me support it. That is wrong, and intellectually I know it, but viscerally I can’t help myself.


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Roger, Look at it this way, we all need energy, PG&E is a conglomerate of outlandish proportions that is raking in the profits hand over fist. Now if I have to buy energy and I do, I would rather see the profits go to my county and run off into my city. The only thing I’m worried about is that they’ll use the profits, down the road to create BIGGER LOCAL” GUBMENT.” Paul is correct when he say’s that if they mess it up, we aren’t giving them any more money than we have been, I think they know how we all feel. IMO, the problem isn’t that our gov is stupid, on the contrary, they are anything but stupid. The problem is that they are often greedy. They can manage this, they needed a wake up call and their phones have been ringing non stop. Monopoly’s are never a good thing for the consumer.


I VOTE NO


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PG&E is already the major employer in our county next to the government. They are the major property tax payers which goes to fund our schools, fire, police etch. Government pays none. They charge a big price for allowing PG&E to distribute electricity throughout our cities which we end up paying. PG&E does not make money selling electricity. The cost of building and mainting power infrastructure is inmense and they are allowed to recover costs through the rates they charge.


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OoooU, this is a toughie!


Who do you trust, big business or Big Government?


So far our local governments haven’t got the message that it’s tough going out there in the real world and I would hate for them to be able to increase more fees and taxes without a vote. I know, it would be cool to be able to raise fees, Jimbo, and then foist the blame on a big nasty business.


Right now, the county has hired several new people… people and positions I have to wonder about given the state of the economy. By the way, why do we need so many in the planning department again?


Anyway, I would like to keep my eye on one large monster than all the little ones wanting to reach deep into everyone’s wallet! Oh my, was that over the top? I can’t really tell!


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The only place that I can see them reaching into our pockets is if they were to foist a sales tax increase. They also know it would be political suicide. Guess, they can raise traffic tickets, permits, etc they are already jacked up beyond reason. We tax payers aren’t going to agree to give our gov any more money, they know that, if they end up not being able to pay their salaries, they’ll have to take pay cut’s and downsize. That would be a good idea regardless.

When the tax payers have an opportunity to break up a monopoly that every residence reliey”s on, it’s an easy call. It’s mighty slick of PG&E to set up a proposition where 50% of the vote today can dictate that it will take 75% of a future vote to reverse it. SLICK


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Who do you trust? It’s obvious that there is no local government agency that is going to protect you. There profit will be with fees, taxes etc.., where as PG&E is just going to charge you to get there profit. Of the two I would probably want to go with PG&E because at least you would have the Public Utilities Commission to oversee them and a place where the public could file complaints. Local government agencies would only look at this as an avenue to collect more fees, taxes etc. and would sweep all of their mistakes under the carpet. Like most things that government does, they are usually imcompetant at what they do and usually end up costing the taxpayer way too much for what they get or don’t get.


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I don’t really care who you would rather go with. I would just like an option.

Do you recall when long distance telephone calls were 20+ cents a minute? My business ran up over $1,500. a month in payments to AT&T. Then MCI came along, and Sprint and IDT and now it’s just about free. You can call any where, any time for how ever long and it’s a flat rate of $50 a month.

That’s what happens when you give a monopoly competition, it’s called “free market driven”. This is just the beginning of free enterprise in the energy arena. As soon as a third competitor joins in, the prices will start to drop and by the time there’s a forth, you’ll wonder where PG&E buried all the money they used to charge you.

That’s why this proposition is worth $36 Million of PG&E propaganda adds. It’s also a perfect storm. People are angry about the economy and angry that they don’t have enough say in how their tax $$ get spent. PG&E are counting on 51% of us voters to be just a little below a 90 IQ after all the repetitive brainwashing adds. $36 Million worth..


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As near a perfect reply as I could imagine. If those with sufficient IQ care to check most of the so called flag waving free enterprise corporations are scared to death of competition, just what most of us favor and actually revere. Unfair competition (if any at all) and all its offshoots have become the way of business at high levels.

It always amazes me that even those who are totally ripped off by the evil monster corporations often support them. Just like with many politicians and public issues, the rabble are herded this way and that to actually vote against their own best interests. Stampede to war, oppose health care reform, vote in people who say ‘let the buyer beware’ in our economic affairs (oppose realistic monetary reform). Just amazing…


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Hotdog


Corporations arent evil, its much worse than that. Corporations are soulless and indifferent. They have no morals their only purpose is to make money for themselves, they have a legal obligation to make money at any cost for their share holders, when people act with such amoral indifference to other people around them or their community as a whole, we call them socio-paths. Corporations are nothing more than giant sociopthic greed machines


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Well right on. Here is an example of our government trying to protect us from the evil corporations. Prop 16 is a real nasty attempt by PG and E to maintain their near monopoly on energy, in the true spirit of Enron. Thanks Jim and the others who join him in opposing this cynical attempt to cheat the citizens in California out of their right to have multiple energy options.

This so called Right to Vote act is a scam, use your right to vote against it.


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