H-3654.1  _______________________________________________

                     HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 4030

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      53rd Legislature     1994 Regular Session

By Representative Bray

Read first time 01/26/94.  Referred to Committee on Energy & Utilities.

Petitioning Congress to designate the Bonneville Power Administration a government corporation.

    TO THE HONORABLE BILL CLINTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, AND TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE AND THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, AND TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES, IN CONGRESS ASSEMBLED AND TO SECRETARY OF ENERGY HAZEL O'LEARY:

    We, your Memorialists, the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Washington, in legislative session assembled, respectfully represent and petition as follows:

    WHEREAS, Congress created the Bonneville Power Administration to revitalize the stagnant Pacific Northwest economy with inexpensive hydropower from the Bonneville Dam and other dams on the Columbia River system; and

    WHEREAS, The Pacific Northwest electric marketplace is changing due to the deregulation of the electric utility industry, the end of the Northwest energy surplus, increased competition in power markets, new and growing environmental commitments, and new investment needs; and

    WHEREAS, The Bonneville Power Administration has initiated its Competitiveness Project through which it will reorganize itself in order to maintain its low-cost supplier position by increasing its efficiency and becoming an institution that is market-driven, customer-focused, cost-conscious, and results-oriented; and

    WHEREAS, Vice President Gore's National Performance Review Task Force has designated the Bonneville Power Administration one of seventeen "Reinvention Laboratories" in the federal government that will become more efficient, more responsive, and in some cases, a smaller government agency that cuts through red tape, exceeds customer expectations, and unleashes innovations for improvement from its employees; and

    WHEREAS, The Bonneville Power Administration is supported by the revenues it receives by selling electric power, transmission services, and other products primarily in the Pacific Northwest; and

    WHEREAS, The Bonneville Power Administration provides sixty-five percent of the electric power consumed in the state of Washington; and

    WHEREAS, The Washington State Energy Strategy states, "energy is one of the key factors that defines the economic opportunities, environment, and quality of life in the state of Washington"; and

    WHEREAS, The National Academy of Public Administration has completed a report that concludes that Bonneville Power administration fits all the criteria for a government corporation; and

    WHEREAS, Corporation status would save ratepayers tens of millions of dollars every year in administrative costs and retain the Bonneville Power Administration's relationships with Congress, the Northwest Power Planning Council, and state and local governments;

    NOW, THEREFORE, Your Memorialists respectfully pray that the President and Congress support the Bonneville Power Administration's Competitiveness Project that represents the agency's efforts to retain its status as the region's low-cost electricity provider and become a more efficient, as well as, effective competitor in the utility industry; and

    BE IT RESOLVED, That the Clinton Administration work closely with the Bonneville Power Administration through Vice President Gore's National Performance Review to assist Bonneville in becoming more responsive to the needs of the Pacific Northwest; and

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Congress designate the Bonneville Power Administration as a government corporation that would continue to operate under the terms and conditions of existing federal legislation; and

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of the this Memorial be immediately transmitted to the President of the United States, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, each member of Congress from the State of Washington, the House of Representatives Subcommittee on Energy and Utilities, and to Secretary of Energy Hazel O'Leary.

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