Municipalization
Municipalization is often a lengthy and complicated process by which a city or county tries to acquire ownership or responsibility for the operation of a utility system that serves its residents. Today, the energy landscape is vastly different than it was 50 or even 15 years ago, making municipalization a less feasible and unappealing choice.
On Nov. 4, the citizens of Jefferson County passed a ballot initiative that authorizes the Public Utility District No. 1 of Jefferson County to provide electric service, which ultimately will require the condemnation of Puget Sound Energy’s assets in the county.
The debate over the formation of a new electric public utility district in the 21st century is a complex, and, at times, highly charged discussion. We fully respect the views of those who support public power, which has a great history in our state. However, it is our obligation to our customers to provide accurate information about the risks and costs of pursuing such an endeavor at this point in time.
As part of providing information to our customers, we commissioned two independent studies – a June 2008 study to identify the process for gaining access to federal power by any new PUD and a July 2008 feasibility study outlining the cost of PSE’s distribution assets in Jefferson County.
PSE also hired a professional campaign manager to provide our customers with information regarding the potential impacts of the proposed ballot measure on their pocketbooks and utility rates. The campaign was fully funded by shareholder dollars, meaning not one penny of our customers’ dollars were spent in this effort.
The energy business – the generation, transmission and distribution of power – is changing faster than ever. Global demand for energy is rising; emphasis on global warming is at the forefront of all our public policy discussions; the cost of raw materials is increasing; and power is more critical to our lives than ever before. We believe the combination of our economies of scale and our commitment to reconnect with our local communities will strengthen our ability to provide all our customers with safe, reliable and affordable power.
Now that the Jefferson PUD has authority to provide electric service, we anticipate that the PUD will thoroughly review the feasibility and costs associated with purchasing, operating and maintaining an electric utility. PSE will wait for and respond to questions from the PUD.
During this time of study, we will continue to meet our obligations to our customers and communities to get them the information they need to make an informed decision on having the PUD possibly provide electric service.
We are privileged to have been Jefferson County’s local provider for nearly 90 years and we want to assure our customers that we will continue to provide great customer service and engage with the community while we work through the various stages of this process with the PUD. PSE looks forward to continuing to provide safe, reliable and affordable power to our customers in Jefferson County.
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