Evening capital news. (Boise, Idaho) 1901-1927, 1912-11-27
STATE CONTROL
Of POWER SITES
NOW ADVOCATED
Conservation Proposit / 0 n
viii Probably Be Placed
Before Legislature at the
Coming Session.
State control Of power sites!

State control Of power sites!
This is the proposition that has beer
launched for the consideration u
members eject Of the next legislature
| Simplified. the plan proposed is Il
withdraw from entry all power sites IN
this state not already filed upon and
to hold them under state control, SUI
pervision and administration. The plan
goes farther and suggests develop
| ment Of these water power sites ny
the state for the purpose Of Harvesting
them and generating electricity for
the use Of the public.
Isle Makes Proposition.
The proposition Is submitted by c.
]. Lisle, Of the Richfield Recorder who
has been in Boise several days. He
says:
"One Of the incest things for some
live. progressive legislator to propose
at Boise this winter. is the great un-
used water power Of the state, by the
state itself.
There is no other resource in Idaho,
so exclusive, 50 valuable, as the water
power Of the rivers of the state. All
over the state there are streams that
Sdii easily Uc ucNclOpeu, 50 IUdI OU0
general development could be under
taken as a state activity without
sighting any portion. 1t should be
possible to issue and sell say $25, :
600 worth Of e-guaranteed bonds.
and start a comprehensive Develop
ment of the power possibilities of Ida
no. Where these power sites fall in
to private hands, 1t usually happens
that there is not enough ready capital
in sight to develop them; usually a
small plant is installed, at high rates,
and 1t is made to pay right along for
all the development. The state should
own every one of the big power sites
along the Snake river, and a law 10
take them under the police power #
the state. paying a fair valuation
therefor and then deciding them to the
people, would be an essential part Of
the general plan.
Object Lessons Given.
with the Minidoka project as an
object lesson, where the settlers will
own the power when the project re-
pays to the national government the
cost Of the project as it has been de-
veloped and administered the people
~ ANSAiic Vail 6OI Oil idCd Vi WHdl lIllS
plan might mean. They get electricity
at a figure that gives private COM
panies the cold shivers. State bonds
could be floated in the large sums nes-
essary to develop the power of Idahn,
at an interest rate Of between 8 and
per cent. II these bonds could lie
guaranteed by the national govern
ment, taking, say, issuing a bond for
80 or 40 years. so that the payment
period would come after the work had
all been, done and every possible de-
velopment made Of the lands and the
power, 1t should be one Of the finest
new systems that could be devised.
while there are many power pos
sibilities in the state that have not
yet been touched, there are many
others which the state has given
over to be filed on so laxly that
almost any industrious man with "A
few dollars capital can hold them
and make them develop themselves
by taking 1t out, of the consumer us
he goes along. The ones on which
no filings have been made, should
be withheld from all further entry
except for municipal or community
development and system of tax
alton evolved that would bring all the
others back under the public control.
Where a small plan. is being made 20
hold an enormous power possibility
against forfeiture or against develop
ment by rival companies. the same
principle of law that DEGREES water
only to those who use 1t for irrigation
should be invoked. and the whole sys-
tenn could be taken under the police
power of the state. Under the general
provision Of the Idaho law that the
waters belong to the state, 1t is not
hard to frame a code that will allow
the state to recover and to develop
these streams for the public good.
This suggestion is not patented or
and some one who is in
the legislative game could do lot
to make himself and his state famous
by earnestly going after it this win
ter"