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Show ...but Lehi says, 'No' As the Mayor of Lehi and on behalf of the Citizens of Lehi, I must take exception to your editorial of May 4, 1983. Your editorial seemed to be totally in support of Utah Power and Light Company's attempt to take the federal power Lehi and other public power entities have under contract. You indicated it would lower rates for most consumers. con-sumers. I would like to point out that if Lehi loses its allocation of federal power, our rates would have to increase 18 percent and our citizens could not afford this. Your editorial seemed to indicate that California cities are receiving, or could receive, power from the Colorado River Storage Project, Northern Division. When in fact, they are not nor could they under the law. There is some power generated at Boulder Dam that is going to California, but the generators were put in by private entities and are not government property so the taxpayers did not pay this cost. The consumers such as those in Lehi are paying the cost of CRSP dams through their power, rates. The rates include repayment of construction costs plus interest, irrigation projects such as canals, etc., and funds to be set aside for future Reclamation projects., I -believe our ratepayers are more than paying their share. I also believe that considering the amount of money we have paid in the past and the financial damage the loss of this power could mean, the power should be reallocated to those now having CRSP contracts. To take this power away or even reduce the allocation considerably would be similar to taking away Utah Power and Light's older plants in which they have embedded costs and which provide them with cheap electricity. elec-tricity. The sale of the power from the CRSP Projects was not to encourage electrification as you indicated; it was for the purpose of paying for the "projects. The government asked any and all Preference Customers to step up and sign contracts for the power on a "take or pay" basis, which meant we paid for the power whether we were able to use it or not. The cost of the power at that time was really not that much of a bargain. Lehi signed up to obtain power for the future and to help insure that the projects would be built so they could help Utah. . I would suggest that KSL not support Utah Power and Light's plan to destroy public power. We are their competition, com-petition, and in so being, we help their ratepayers maintain lower rates. We provide the yardstick to measure cost and service to the consumers. -Garry R. Sampson Mayor of Lehi |