The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-11-15
Handed Down by U.
S. District Court.
Permission To Make Agree.
ments Granted by Court.
NO GAS FOR POWER PURPOSES
40 Per Cent of Sale Proceeds
Goes to Receiver.
New Rates Take Effect After
November Readings.

A net rate of eighty cents per thou.
sand cubic feet for natural gas will be
charged by the distributing companies
by virtue of an order issued by Judge
Wilbur F. Booth, of the United States
district court, for the district of Kan
sas. Applications which were filed by
the various distributing companies
were heard by Judge Booth at st.
Paul and the order following the
hearing, bears the date of November
13. Country consumers served direct
from the lines of the receiver are to
be charged the same rates as provided
for consumers in the city nearest them.
The rate of eighty cents a thousand.
provided for Topeka, is not a maxi
mum rate, the order emphasizes, and
is authorized without prejudice to the
rights of the distributing companies
, to collect greater rates If this can be
done by agreement with the cities.
Minimum of so Cents.
The receiver and distributor shall
, charge and collect from each con-
, sumner a minimum bill of fifty cents.
Forty per cent of the proceeds of the
sale of the gas will go to the receiver
and sixty per cent to the distributing
company, it is explained. Except as
authorized by special order. no COM
, pany may sell gas for power purposes.
brick plants. smelters or oil refineries.
| The new rates are to take effect from
and after the November meter read
| ings, except at Kansas City.
The order, SO far as it authorizes
an increase of rates and new per-
| centage of division. is not mandatory
upon the distributing companies, but
! is optional with each company. If the
/ option is exercised by any company
such action by it will be understood
| to be subject to the following condi-
Ytions:
If it shall be finally determined ju-
diciaily that consumers on the system
I, of any distributing company are en-
titled to a refund on the whole or any
part of the this increase of rates, such
refund shall be borne by the respec-
tive distributing company and by the
receiver in the same proportion as
they share, respectively, in the present
| increase of rates; and If the whole
present increase is absorbed by the
distributing company. such company
shall bear the whole of any such re-
fund.
Rates Only Temporary.
Judge Booth holds that the rates are
esta blished temporarily and are not
fully compensatory either to the re-
ceiver or the distributing companies
, if due consideration were given to a
fair value of their respective plants
1t is explained that at the present time
it has not been feasible for the court
to make an exhaustive examination of
| these values.
Nevertheless. it is pointed out, 1t
appears certain that the reasonable
compensatory rate will be much
higher. Judge Booth states that the
change in the percentage of division
has been made so as to favor the dis
tributing companies at this time pri-
marily because of a change in the
status of the leakage problem. Hith-
erto an abnormally large leakage in
the distributing systems has been
borne by the receiver, it is said, and
the court announces that ii is heartily
in favor of the proposed move of the
t government in Investigating the waste
of gas and compel the parties respon-
sible to take any necessary steps ia
| confine the waste within reasonable
| limits.
r 1t is pointed out that the increased
2 rates should materially help the dis
e tributing companies to meet the new
= expense of making repairs to eliminate
this leakage and while 1t might seem
: that the public is being made to pay
! for this. it is pointed out that in the
past the public has been receiving gas
at rate too low to give the companies
a reasonable return and permit then
to make necessary repairs. The rate,
established by the new order, thu
court holds. are still below the in
trinsic worth of gas as compared with
!, other fuel.
Rates I'm Cities.
i, The minimum rate per Thousand
:. cubic feet set by the court for som,
=. of the cities near Topeka is as fol
lows:
u Topeka MISREPRESENTATION, q
Atchlson ..................... ~
Leavenworth ......-............... g
e iIhWTtn'e y
! Kansas City ...................... 4
> Pittsburg, Kan. ....................... !;