The San Francisco call., 1908-05-31
BOARD TO FIX GAS
i, AND WATER RATES
Supervisors Hope to Agree on
Ordinances Fair to People
and Corporations

AAo "oIh OIL uXlHS Cne uSuliHS oiiN
water rates will be taken UP again to-
morrow and the supervisors hope to
agree on ordinances that VIII be 1alr
to both the people and the corporations.
There are indications that the mem
bers Will be able to settle the water
controversy, although it appeared last
week as il legislation on that subject
would be impossible.
|. The gas rate ordinance is liable to
prove troublesome, however, for sew
eral Of the supervisors feel that the
company is entitled to higher rate
than that which will be recommended
by the committee-S5 cents per 1000
cubic feet.
1t is likely that the water rate ordi-
nance presented by the special COM
mittee, which was defeated by tie
vote of to last Friday, will be re-
introduced by either Murphy or Clan
mini. If the seven members who voted
to pass 1t to print again stand together
tomorrow 1t is almost certain that they
will carry the measure. as Hooks. who
was absent at the previous meeting,
will vote with them. Hooks says that
he believes the 1902 schedule with
$1760o0 additional for the water used
by the municipality will give the cor
poration fair return on its invest
ment. and he accordingly will vote
for it.
STAND OF NEW MEMBERS
DIR. d'Ancona, who has been appointed
TO succeed Sachs, is probably one of the
best versed members of the board on
the water question. He made a care
full study of the subject while mem
Der Of the preceding board and is in
position to vote intelligently. While
he has not expressed himself on the
question it Is believed that his vote
will be recorded for the 1902 schedule,
as it is known that in the old board
he did not favor the raising of rates
to be collected from the tax payers.
George A. Connolly, who succeeded Staf-
ford who resigned on account of Ill
health, was excused from voting Fri
day, as he did not consider himself
sufficiently posted on the subject of
water rates. Since then he has been
giving careful study to the figures
brought out at the water inquiry and
it is believed that he will take active
part in the discussion on Monday. Sew
eral questions asked by him at the
meeting on Friday would indicate that
the arguments advanced in support of
the plea for an advance in the rates
did not convince him that the COM
pany would suffer IL allowed the sched-
ule recommended by the committee.
Assuming that D'Ancona and Connolly
will. like Hooks, vote for the passage
to print of the committee ordinance,
the bill will go through providing SUI
pervisors who supported it Friday stand
fast.
GAS COMPANY's PLEA
The gas rate committee will recon-
mend the adoption of the S5 cent
schedule and lively discussion is
certain to follow. The plea of the gas
company for a dollar rate is based on
the theory that the city should reim-
burse it for it's losses during the fire.
Such a policy is In direct violation of
the law passed by the state to prevent
counties selling bonds to and in the
work of railroad building and extern
sions.
IF we are going to vote money to
the gas company TO recoup its fire
losses," said a member of the board
yesterday, I'VE might with more JUS
tice restore the homes of the poor who
lost everything in the. fire. They GER
tainly are entitled to more considera-
tion at our hands than the big corpo-
rations.
eff a supervisor was to introduce
resolution authorizing an appropria-
tion to build home for a fire sufferer
he would be laughed out Of the meet
ing room. Yet that is practically
what the gas company asks us to do
when 1T demands a dollar rate. 1t
needs 100000 for depreciation, ETC.,
say its officers, and because Of the
| fire is too poor to improve its plant.
COMPARES PRIVATE LOSSES
"The city is not bound to make good
| the losses of the gas corporation any
more than it Is the losses of any private
citizen. We all suffered losses at that
time and are not asking the munici-
pa1ity TO reimburse u.s.
But, take another view of the re-
quest. We are asked to tax the rate
payer to restore the plant of the COM
pany. Say we comply What Is the
result? Next year the company will be
asking US to fix rate that will give
| it interest on this new investment-an
investment made possible through
overcharging the citizen for his light
and power.
| 1.-The company certainly is modest 1t
first wanted us to pay its losses out of
our pockets, and when we do that, pay
| 4 4