S-4408.1  _______________________________________________

                    SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL 8027

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      55th Legislature     1998 Regular Session

By Senators Brown, Hargrove, Prentice, Haugen, Rasmussen, Kohl, McAuliffe, Fairley, Fraser, Spanel, T. Sheldon, B. Sheldon, Snyder, Loveland, Franklin, Bauer, Wojahn, Kline, Patterson and Jacobsen

Read first time 02/02/98.  Referred to Committee on Energy & Utilities.

Urging Congress to abandon energy deregulation.

    TO THE HONORABLE WILLIAM J. 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:

    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 is deliberating the deregulation of the retail electric marketplace; and

    WHEREAS, Washington State's consumer-owned and investor-owned electric utilities offer consumers a high degree of reliability and service quality while providing some of the lowest rates in the country; and

    WHEREAS, Washington State is unique in that fifty percent of Washington residents are served by public electric utilities that were created by the people for the people; and

    WHEREAS, Low-cost power is a critical component of Washington's robust economy; and

    WHEREAS, Recent studies indicate that if deregulation of the electrical industry were to occur, consumers in Washington may see rate increases in excess of twenty-five percent; and

    WHEREAS, Consumer protection, system reliability, and service quality may be at risk in Washington if energy deregulation occurs; and

    WHEREAS, The choice that Washington consumers want most is to keep their current system of low-cost and reliable power.

    NOW, THEREFORE, Your Memorialists respectfully pray that Congress abandon the idea of imposing any form of energy deregulation upon Washington State's unique power system and allow our citizens to determine the energy regulation structure that works best for them.

    BE IT RESOLVED, That copies of this Memorial be immediately transmitted to the Honorable William J. Clinton, President of the United States, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and each member of Congress from the State of Washington.

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