The San Francisco call., 1905-03-16
PUBLIC UTILITIES.

FTER years of agitation the people of Oakland have
voted on municipal ownership of public utilities The vote
upon nearly 100000 in bonds based
the y credit for the acquisition and instament munpal
water plant the plan the leaving the
field existing plant in corporate ownership as conf
pettor proposed municipal plant We this minor
feature for the that larger question seems 10 nave
Aside from this larger question settled the COM
influenced by indsposion ncumber the c credit and
revenues in experiment public ownership
that the bonds failed majority
would have been for the bonds they
upon proposed plant alone leaving the public
credit free and unncumbered
The troubled experience Europe country bonding
municipalities for public utilities has inclined the more intelligent
plant carry the of creation and to be paid
by Cities Great Britain which have followed
plan ncumberng public credit for such purposes have had
colossal burden of taxation for municipal plants The
British Local Government Board reports that
adopted municipal ownership public debt in 1875 only
head OF population Now the cities
public 65ooooooo $50 per head of population
Commenting upon municipal finance the Lon
don Times he the British people say
whether not they concur IN the transfer not only OF great pec
ave experimental industries but OF all sorts OF
we'll municipal control whether is de-
sble that towns and cities should be changed INTO essentially
socac communities where trade industry and local government
socialistc lines whether the incur
ring of supendous financial liabilities the rapid accumulation OF
almost unbearabe OF local
with the only of the
and localities concerned but OF the nation at large and Weer
that all these things right and desirable the status
local governing bodies being maintained high point
confidence
dealing questions public ordinary local govern
erprises control of huge municipal
Indebtedness that shall not become the welfare of
the country"
In this country question in green
Britain the dry There the carnival of municipal ownership
public utilities Mr. Joseph Chamberlain when he
the Mayor of Birmingham has passed through the of
and hope and the cherries and gd day of accounting
The responsibility the ncumbranee of the
public credit supendous and appalling that the wisest d
of municipal ownership compelled about for
sober method high intelligence the
resong policy which
requires the public be further impaired and that each
public plant be paid by the
and BY the taxpayers
To these philosophers the people of Oakland have given
confidence this better plan have given their approval We
persuaded that they have acted wisely Let their action be fol
lowed by the legal right
bondpon the plant be acquired be paid by the
who For public buildings for fire purposes
sprinkle the ALL
will be patron of works and the should be paid
by all the people There socey required find the OF
the that used for those and all the people should
paw the the plant administration should
be paid by the private consumers whom it serves
We pointed heretofore the Endorsements OF this
proper policy by the people of the State the OF the ferry
depot and the seawa Neither OF those projects would
been ndorsed had the debt for that purpose been put upon the
payers pay properly upon the of the utilities
created and being paid and will be paid by them alone and the
public ownership administration without
the public except such of them Before the
they had have the authority of law for acquisition by that method
It given and the plants acquired Before city
like acquire public utilities have the authority of
and the way to get it IS to ask for it.
Oakland rejected acquisition morgaging
property increasing their and negatively
ndosed the position of The Call for acquiring public utilities
shall their credit without
local that city that overestnated their
intelligence when asked them burden their public credit
their bonding power and increase their We think differently
Of the people OF Oakland We think that the local under
estimated their intelligence when asked them adopt such
astrous policy.
CALIFORNIA WHEAT