Montana Republicans are considering a windfall profits tax against the power generators that have gouged their deregulated market. We can't afford to leave our electricity supply in the hands of greedy profiteers. Economists say that a reliable electricity system depends upon a 20 percent electricity surplus. But the for-profit energy companies gain most by keeping supplies tight. Publicly controlled power systems, being not for profit, ensure adequate supplies.
People have to decide what they want.
After a century of gigantic, unresponsive electricity monopolies, deregulation seeks to create a system where consumers have more control and more choices, and are not just cogs in the electricity machine. Only in California did our leaders completely botch the job. Only in California is it proposed to turn the entire electricity system over to those same leaders, creating one statewide bloated electricity bureaucracy. If so, it would be a historical first. The 2,000 public power systems in this country ensure that a reliable supply of power is available and sell power at an average of 15 to 20 percent lower than the regulated private utilities.