The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1913-08-30

ties 40 we'll q the utility corporation
itself.
Z. unnsosssary Duplisaston.-An-
other important economic result Of
state regulatioa 10 the elimination Of
waste BY preventing the unnecessary
duplication Of utility plants and equip.
ment. I am hrm believer in compe-
tition, but whsn such competition re-
suits in the construction Of utility
plants and equipment far beyond the
possible needs Of the community
served. such competition compsls the
public to support institutions that are
not necessary. An unwarranted tax Ia
imposed upon the public at largo and
the enterprise usually brings fnan-
cfal ruin to the investors. The COM
mission should have authority upon
investigation to order increased facili-
ties and equipment, whenever neces.
sary, and to authorize other utility
corporations to enter the field in order
that the people may have adequate
service without paying excessive
rates. but whore the community can
not support another plant, the COM
mission must have authority to refuse
its installation. II in the interest of
economy and good service, 1t should
be Of advantage to the municipality
to own and operate any particular
utility, such Municipality should have
the right to acquire the same. paying
therefor its actual value and no more.
8 Municipal Regulation Too Elk.
penslve.-Intelligent regulation OF pub.
lie utilities requires very high order
of engineering, accounting and sta
tistical skill. livery one engaged in
expert service, must have scientific
knowledge Of utility organization.
management and operation in all its
departments. The commission must
have line Of trusty and capable ex-
perts to whom the most technical
and scientific problems can be re.
ferred for investigation and report.
Such experts must have q wide range
Of experience. be familiar with utili-
ties problems a every section of the
state. and haze a thorough under
standing Of industrial and commercial
conditions generally. In addition
thereto. they must be Of unquestioned
integrity, free from local influence or
: prejudice I'd Sctuated only by the
highest sense bf Justice and equity.
The cost of Such experts and the
necessary mechanical equipment is
prohibitive to all municipalities in
this state with the exception only of
Minneapolis, st. Paul and Duluth. l
will gladly concede that these large
cities can afford this great expense,
but granting that, why should the
taxpayers of those cities pay for
three sets Of experts and equipment
when one set is not only sufficient
but can serve all the cities better?
The question is unanswerable. The
very object of regulation is to secure
the best possible service at the low
est cost to the consumer, and the I'M
necessary duplication of regulating
authorities is not only great eco.
nomic waste but also a needless d.
vision of responsibility which neces-
sarily must result in proportionate
ineficient service.
4. Using Equipment In Common
Finally, there is much equipment that
can be used by several utilities in
! common. In the construction of un-
derground conduits and mains through
the streets as many public utilities as
by the nature of the service can op-
crate together should cooperate in
the cost of construction and the use
of common equipment. There is no
valid reason why three or four diff
ferent sets of telephone or telegraph
= poles should disf1gure and obstruct
our public highways and the COM
/ munity at large be made to pay for
such unnecessary duplication of
equipment. Since nearly all of the
public utilities are inter-municipal, it
follows that there must be state
commission vested with full authority
to order such common use of equip
ment after due investigation and to
apportion the pro rata cost thereof
/ among those benefited.
III. UNIFORMITY.
I. Accounting-In order to secure
the highest standard of efficiency and
! economy, it is absolutely essential to
have comparative statistics showing
| the operation and experience Of the
various utility plants throughout the
state as we'll as other states. There
must, therefore, be established uni
form system of accounting. Such ac-
counting should show in detail the
financial and operating experience Of
every plant Under the present sys-
TEN 1t is impossible for one plant to
benefit by the experience Of the other,
because there is no uniform system of
computing the cost Of operation so as
to determine net results Wherever q
uniform system of accounting has
been established and reliable sta
tistical information furnished to the
various plants of the state. there has
always resulted a general improve
ment from the standpoint Of efficiency
and economy. Today surprisingly few
plants know the exact cost Of their
own operation, much less that Of any