August 15, 2001

Electric bill doubles

Wes Higgins - Kalispell - Letter to the Editor

To the editor:

With all due respect to Inter Lake writer William Spence, I will recognize elected officials this Fall when my lights go on, but I certainly will not "give thanks to elected officials" as Spence suggests.

You see, I just paid my electric bill this morning and it is double what it was one year ago, and I am supposed to thank them for that? Evidently, Mr. Spence was not paying attention in 1997 when Judy Martz's Chief of Staff (Barlett) drafted and lobbied the deregulation bill's passage at the eleventh hour of that session. Evidently, Mr. Spence was not paying attention when the 2001 legislature (and Martz) refused to do anything to protect electric consumers and, once again, passed an eleventh hour bill to assure PP&L of big profits.

Therefore, I am hardly in a frame of mind to thank our politicians for saving me from a 200% increase and only saddling me with a 100% increase. Yes, I remember Martz, Harp, Sliter, and the rest of the bunch that did this to us on the first of every month, but not in what you would call a kindly or appreciative way.

Copyright 2001 The Bigfork Eagle