Will We Be Left In The Dark?

We all need electric power. That is a must in our modern society. Our economy, our security and our very health depends upon it. We have a near intolerable system of electric generation and distribution today. It is past time to begin investing more heavily in 'green' power, wind, solar and other innovations.

The following is a letter I sent to the state director of the Public Utilities Commission. Dear Mr. Hudson:

I hope you are well and that this is a good year for you and all of us here in Texas. I am concerned about the rising costs for electricity. I applaud the recent decision by your commission to stop a rate increase by AEP.

I am disabled, single and experiencing a number of health problems. I live on my Social Security disability and it doesn't stretch far enough. I live in a small, one bedroom apartment and I currently have a past due electric bill, from CPL, of $126.00 which I will pay when I get my next SS check this Friday. A new bill will be here soon. I will have the same problem.

During the summer my bill topped $300.00 once and was over $200 all summer. This is an extreme hardship. I am sure many other folks are in similar, or much worse situations. Deregulation has been, frankly, a disaster and should be ended. This 'motto' (slogan?) is on your web site by your picture.
Advancing Innovation Through Competition
In my opinion there is no truth in this what so ever! Where is the innovation? Where are the savings? Who is responsible for full time, efficient electric generation and transmission? Why do we suffer so many outages, even in good weather? What will happen when we do suffer a severe weather situation such as a hurricane or a tornado?

It is, frankly, ridiculous for so many companies to call themselves "energy companies" when they produce no energy and maintain no transmission lines. It is a case of middle men in the way of the consumer.

No new power plants are being built, as of now, and some current ones, such as the Barney Davis power plant near where I live, are being considered for closure. Why? That would be stupid!

Electric power is a necessity. It should not be a commodity for sale in the marketplace. I sleep with a C PAP machine at night to enable me to breathe. Without power I could not sleep safely. I should be able to depend on reliable and affordable electric energy.

Every municipality or rural district should produce its own power and the power grid should be a backup for emergencies. This is a public duty and should not be at the mercy and vagaries of some nebulous energy market.

Public ownership should be restored to power and the needs of a community should be more important than profit for so called energy companies with slick media campaigns!

Sincerely,

Dicky Neely

Corpus Christi, Tx.