Countdown to public power
 	 		 		
Countdown to public power | October 24, 2001 | SFBG News
 		 		 		 		
Reason no. 9 to vote for Proposition F and Measure I HERE'S THE 
NINTH of the top 10 reasons to vote for the two public power 
initiatives on the Nov. 6 ballot: Proposition F (the city-run 
water and power agency) and Measure I (the municipal utility 
district, or MUD).
 						
The opposition's lies: The flyers that clotted mailboxes around 
the city this month were slick. They were well-designed, with 
pretty lettering and a red-white-and-blue color scheme. And they 
were packed with lies.
 						
The Coalition to Stop the 3 Billion Dollar Bill, funded 
generously by AT and SBC Pacific Bell (who fear a MUD would take 
over their businesses in addition to PG's energy system), printed 
the flyers, which featured a safety pin representing the MUD 
"sticking" consumers with taxes and trouble. The big problem with 
their logic: MUDs can't levy taxes. The California Municipal 
Utilities Association says a MUD would likely fund itself by 
selling bonds, which would be paid off with revenues from energy 
sales. There are no taxes involved.
 						
The flyer also stated that the MUD would be exempted from the 
city's "pioneering sunshine laws." Again, it's just not true. As 
a state agency, the MUD will automatically be covered by state 
and federal open government laws. If the board of directors votes 
to put itself under the local Sunshine Ordinance, the MUD will 
follow in the footsteps of the San Francisco Local Agency 
Formation Commission, which voted to do so last spring.
 						
(It's ironic that the coalition, whose membership includes the 
Chamber of Commerce, is using the Sunshine Ordinance to pick up 
support. The chamber fought the Sunshine Initiative when it was 
on the ballot two years ago.)
 						
Finally, the flyer warned that the MUD will take funds from city 
spending on the homeless, housing, and education. That's another 
specious argument: the MUD, as an independent state agency, would 
have no authority to draw cash from the city's General Fund.
 						
For the MUD Now coalition's response to PG's lies go to 
www.sfbmud.org [http://www.sfbmud.org] . For MUD candidate 
campaign events go to Other Voices.
 						
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