City Won’t Pursue Utility Rate Review Committee

Coun. Bill Cocks addressing the fate of the previous council’s decision to pursue a utility rate review committee following the decision not to go forward with transitioning the energy division into a municipally controlled corporation. Council voted 7 to 1 in favour of ending debate on a rate review committee Monday. (Photo Alex McCuaig)

City council put the kibosh on the last remaining item stemming from the debate last year on converting the energy division into a municipally controlled corporation during Monday’s regular meeting.

The previous council had all but extinguished the issue last year with only the remaining item of whether to establish a rate review committee left to decide.

“This is a publicly owned utility, and we are the publicly elected officials to make decisions on its behalf,” stated Coun. Ted Clugston, energy committee chair, regarding whether there is a need for a rate review committee.

He went on to state, “this is our job!  Possibly the hardest job, I’d say, in a municipality in Alberta making these decisions. And I think the previous council – it was becoming so much pressure – they wanted to pass it on to another group to take the pressure off council.”

Clugston reiterated to council that they were elected to make decisions on municipal utility rates, “just like every other councillor over the past 100 years.”

Fellow energy committee members councillors Stu Young and Bill Cocks also supported ending the debate on developing a rate review committee.

“I hope we’ve heard the last of this,” stated Cocks, “We are ready in this community to carry on with the status quo and need to stop beating the bushes as we have done term after term with council looking at all these different options to privatize, remove the decision making from council.”

Mayor Linnsie Clark during Monday’s council meeting.

Energy division head Rochelle Pancoast told council, as she did last year, that having the rate review committee as a standalone body considering the rejection of a municipally controlled operation still leaves decision making powers with elected officials.

“It’s only when you introduce delegated authority to a rate regulator and, or akin to an MCC-like delegated authority for the energy business, is when council would be providing someone else with the decision-making authority,” stated Pancoast.

However, Mayor Linnsie Clark attempted to salvage the option to continue the debate, but it fell on a 7 to 1 vote.

Clark indicated she is supportive on having a skills-based outside body or group made up of community members to support energy division operations who could advise council and provide staff with an outside perspective rather than it being a decision-making body.

“Oh, bad old days,” stated Clark following the vote being tallied showing the mayor being the only one in favour of maintaining the rate review debate.