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To: Bill Harmond who wrote (6066)	4/3/2001 5:46:50 PM
From: Libbyt	Respond to of 57684

>...Montana is the only state in the Union whose electricity generation has kept pace with demand< From what I've read, the energy crisis is very visible in California, but many other states face the exact same situation in the near future. The new power rates haven't been set yet...since there is a debate about using a different rate based on power used over your "baseline usage". In our area we have "micro-climates"...and within a 20 mile distance from San Francisco we can have as much as a 20 degree temperature difference. This can be a major problem when drastically raising rates using baseline usage as a factor, since to maintain a home at a specific temperature can require much more power to maintain in a different microclimate. Certain areas in the Bay Area are much hotter during the summer, and much colder during the winter. A few years ago when EBMUD had water rationing, and rates based on usage....there were quite a few law suits over the rate plan that was developed. (I can see the same thing happening with the P.G. & E. rates if they are set on baseline usage.) Using solar power IMO seems to make sense. However, the tax laws need to change in order to encourage individuals to spend the money to make these improvements. There was an interesting article a couple of weeks ago, about the private golf club Clint Eastwood built in the Carmel area, and his use of solar power. His club house produced more power than was needed most days, but he was unable to sell the excess power to P.G. & E. That doesn't make sense to me! I'm running...and need to sign off and get some work done, but I'll try to post the article much later tonight.