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Show J.2'lSfcr " !- PROTECTING THE PUBLIC ' The state regularity commissibsn in Missouri and Oklahoma have taken muni-cipaly muni-cipaly owned electric utilities to task, insisting in-sisting that they, as well as privately owned plants, set aside annually a reserve for depreciation and amortization until such funds shall be sufficient to protect municipalities against ultimate loss when it becomes necessary in the interest of progress and economy to dismantle the . plants and in the interest of the public jnake them parts of super systems. The- Missouri commission's decision was in reply o the contention of persons favoring municipal ownership who claim that a depreciation reserve fund was an . unnescessarp expanse. The commission pointed out that no other business would , attempt to operate withqu,t making such a provision aridvtihat Jp many instances, municipally owned utilities which fail td make mich a charge are frequently able to show a surplus, when as a matter of fact they are merely blinding the public to a financial situation which sooner or later will cause the community much trouble; - t The Missourians and Oklahomans are right. Business is business, and too matter mat-ter what kind of stockholders they are they shoould be protected j Here is some work for our Utah com-' com-' mission. It should be done now |