Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1912-09-19
HEARING ON
LIGHTING IS ASKED
City Wants Until October a to
Prepare Argument for Slid
ing Scale Rates.

Seeking to compel the Public serv.
ice Electric Company to adopt a slid
ing scale for lighting municipal
buildings, the lighting committee Of
the Common Council will ask for a
hearing before the Public Utilities
Commission on Friday, October 4.
The hearing was originally set for
tomorrow. but because of the abb
sence of a material witness the city
will ask that it be postponed.
1t is the purpose of the city to
have all of the municipal buildings
grouped under one head as one Gus
toner, instead of each department
being considered as a different Gus
toner, as at present. The
however, holds it is unreasonable to
require the furnishing of electricity
in buildings widely separated at the
same rate as charged a customer for
delivery at one point, and explains
that the rate Is based on average
conditions, and hat the discounts
allowed to customers for quantity of
current consumed are based on the
condition and assumption hat sucn
current is to be delivered at one
particular point. Denial is nae of
the charge of discrimination in the
rate to the city.
Regarding an argument advanced
by Public Service officials that to ac-
cede to the request of the city would
put the company in the position of
discriminating against other custom.
ers who have widely separated de-
partments, Assistant City Counsel
Charles NJ. Myers stated that in a
case at Atlantic City the New Jersey
Supreme Court had decided that such
an adjustment of rates could not be
considered as discriminating because
it was for the benefit of the public.
Much Data Compiled.
Chairman ~Biertuempfel
that such data had been gathered to
prove to the utilities board thai the
city is entitled to a readjustment of
rates and that Inspector Gaffney has
a large fund of information that will
be of value.
Other cities, the chairman stated,
are paying less than Newark. In some
Instances the scale starts at 5 cents
per kilowatt, he said. while in this
city the rate is 10 cents.
THE city of Newark is the largest
customer OF the Public Service Corpo-
ration, using approximately $3.50, 900
worth of electricity per year, was the
comment of Alderman Whitfield, who
declared that to be sufficient reason
for considering all of the city depart-
ments as a unit and giving the NUM-.
cipality the benefit of cheaper lighting
as enjoyed by other large users.
Dissatisfaction with the system em-
ployed by the city for handling the
lighting of the city departments was
expressed by Mr.. Bierteumpfel. THE
system is all wrong he said. AS
the affairs of the departments are
o managed we could not handle a
municipal lighting plant If it should
be built. What should be done is
either to put the lighting in the hands
of the Common Council or of the
Board of Works. The best service
cannot be secured with the manage-
ment of the department divided as It
is now.
Wants Engineer in Charge.
"A competent engineer should be
put in charge. and If l am elected a
member of the Board Of Works I
propose to endeavor to have this de-
partment assigned to either the coun-
Gil or Board of Works and one man
put at the head of it,"
The chairman said it was absurd
to put the work in the hands of a
committee made UP of possibly a real
estate dealer, a physician, lawyer or
men of other vocations who had no
knowledge of electrical engineering.