OCR Text |
Show Council to Support Voters' Decision saw was from the federation's (Southwest (South-west Utah Co-operative Power Federation) attorney, not from the city residents in a grass roots movement (Cedar City Citizens for Locally Owned Power).. .It did not necessarily speak for Cedar City residents and we felt that we had a right to say what we think," said Starr. She also claimed that the added enclosure balanced the two sheets included for Utah Power and Light with two sheets for the position pro . municipally owned power system. "I object because the council approved two documents and the city paid to have those distributed. The changed content of the package doesn't bother me as much as the process which we went through in approving the material," said Fife. Mayor Jack Sawyers said, "I have to take full responsibility and I do object to an extra piece of paper being put in.. .we had 12 statements from each side and I did not fulfill my responsibility because I did not check to see that another piece of paper had been included." While the council will support the public's view, Daphne Dalley who ran lor city council last Nov., said that the case for a municipally owned power system will continue through the Consumer Services Committee before the Public Service Commission if the vote turns out to favor UP & L. Councilman Harold Shirley said that the city council would have to write a letter supporting the 'public's view to the PSC if such a situation occurs. The Cedar City Council unanimously agreed to follow the public's vote on who should own and operate the electric utility system within the city. Controversy over the power issue and the election surfaced last week when Recorder Jacqueline Bulloch presented a memo of a recent conversation con-versation with the state's official ballot printer, Carr Printing. The memo states that Vernon Carr refused to print the ballots since the city's election on the power issue is not a legal bond election or a binding election. "It was Mr. Carr's feeling that an election of this sort confuses people and gives them the opinion that it is a binding election and the council would be required to comply with the results of the election. Therefore, when the time for the bond election comes, people would feel that they have had already voted and the turn out for the bond vote would be very scarce," stated Bulloch in the memo. She said that Carr suggested the alternatives of an ad in the newspaper soliciting public opinion, sending a form with the water bills or a telephone survey. Councilwoman Barbara Starr brought on the council's vote by questioning council members' feelings on the fact that the election is not binding, only a public opinion vote. "My concern is the same .' as what Mr. Carr points out. I'm displeased with how the newly elected council members have changed their stand on municipal power since they have been elected," said Starr. "While this is a straw poll, most of the council members have indicated that they will go along with the public on the issue. We have made information in-formation available and the topic has been talked to death," said new council member Harold Hiskey. Lee Fife, another new council member, raised objections to the information which was distributed by the city. He said that the council had approved the documents to be distributed but that another document had been added to the packet which was hung on doorknobs without the council's approval. "The document which the council |