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Non-Tech : The ENRON Scandal -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Mephisto who wrote (3305)	3/6/2002 2:48:51 AM
From: Raymond Duray	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 5185

Speaking of Dubious: She is at pains to avoid suggestions that the practices she outlines at companies such as France Télécom, Telecom Italia and Ericsson are dubious. It seems our pals at Cogen-tricks couldn't even buy off the locals in North Carolina: riskcenter.com March 6: Deregulation On Power Industry In North Carolina Stalls Location: Charlotte Author: RiskCenter Staff Date: Wednesday, March 6, 2002 Print Article Email Article The deregulation of the power industry in North Carolina is on hold. Last week, a legislative panel made that clear when it indicated it would likely drop a recommendation made in May 2000 that the power market in North Carolina be deregulated by January 1, 2006. That happened before California consumers saw their power bills skyrocket following deregulation. It was before one of the nation's largest wholesale traders in power, Enron, went belly-up. It was before a recession sapped tax collections and focused lawmakers' attention on two straight years of budget shortfalls and budget cutting. "I would say the recommendation in this report is obsolete," legislative lawyer Steve Rose told the legislative panel. The panel -- the Study Commission on the Future of Electric Services in North Carolina -- will meet again before it formally drops the recommendation. At the behest of legislative leaders, the group isn't likely to be disbanded after years of studying the issue. Sen. David Hoyle, D-Gaston, co-chair of the commission, says it is clear the earlier timetable won't be met. But he also believes it is "not in the state's best interest to say deregulation is a dead issue." "Deregulation is certainly an issue that is not dead around the country," he said. The push to deregulate and create competition among electricity providers began in earnest in 1996, when the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ordered that utilities begin to open their transmission lines to competing power merchants. That decision led several states to end monopolies in retail power markets and triggered a move toward competition in the wholesale market. But the commission's decision is now being appealed by utility regulators in nine states, including North Carolina. The lawsuit, now before the U.S. Supreme Court, argues that the FERC order usurps powers reserved to the states, specifically regulating retail sales. Enron had also been suing the agency, arguing that its order did not go far enough to open up competition. Even before the lawsuit was heard last fall before the Supreme Court, legislators in North Carolina had begun to grow queasy about the issue. In California, they saw what happens when deregulation goes wrong, utility bills double and triple, and voters begin holding legislators responsible. As if that weren't enough, it's not likely that North Carolina lawmakers are going to tackle anything so controversial while they also address the financial and political realities of a recession. The anemic economy and slowing tax collections led to a tax increase last year. And lawmakers may have to cut some popular government services this year to avoid yet another tax increase. It all adds up to a politically caustic environment, one that will likely continue not just through this fall's election but into the 2004 election year. Still, the driving force behind power deregulation -- large industrial electricity users that are looking for reduced rates -- isn't going away. Hoyle says he believes the federal government, whether in the form of FERC or Congress, will eventually renew its push for competition in the industry. In addition, there is a side issue in North Carolina -- $5.3 billion in debt hanging over 51 cities that run their own power systems.