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Show POWER COMPANIES ATTITUDE GIVEN ON GOVT. PLANTS New York, July 26 The attitude at-titude of 167 of the nation's business-managed electric light and power companies toward proposed propos-ed river developments by the United States government, was made known in a joint statement on the subject. These developments, providing for the creation of the Missouri Valley Authority and other oro jects similar to TVA, as well as the completion of several already in operation, entail an estimated estimat-ed initial expenditure in excess of $3,850,000,000. The electric companies, representing repre-senting a large portion of the in- j dustry. made four specific points in defining their attitude toward such government undertakings- 1 Whenever a dam is propos- j ed all of its purposes should be j clearly defined in the legisla-1 tion flood control, navigation, irrigation or power and the benefit ben-efit to the people should justify the cost. 2 Government -produced power pow-er should be sold to existing power systems without special privilege or discrimination, so as to avoid costly duplication and to insure widest use and lowest! raleS . ffM0H ! 3 Any savings thus effected should be passed along to consumers con-sumers under state or other regulations, re-gulations, thus assuring all the benefits of the development without government going into business and competing with its ' own citizens. 4 Government may properly regulate business, but should not operate business for government in any business endangers all business. . , Speaking in behali of his ana the other 166 companies sponsoring sponsor-ing the statement. C. Hamilton Moses president of the Arkansas Power & Light company said: This announcement is designed de-signed to clarify the position of the business-managed electric companies regarding river developments de-velopments along the pattern pi TVA The companies wrongfully have been charged with attempt-, attempt-, ing to block such valley develop- 'This is an injustice to the electric companies. We do not oppose any government project of this kind provided it is economical econ-omical sound. What does concern con-cern us" is the threat of annihilation annihila-tion of the business-managed 'electric industry by the use of the taxpayers' money to subsidize subsi-dize government -lower plans unfairly competing with the American Am-erican business man." |