New Britain herald., 1919-12-30
Mayor Does Not Accept Electric Lighting Company'S Explanation OPPOSES "DEMAND CHARGES"
Insists New Rate Schedule Be Draft cd or He Will Take Matter Before Common Council and Possibly to Public Utilities Commission,

In conference With Mayor G. A. Quigley officials of the Connecticut Light and Power company have ad- mitted that the proposed changes in lighting rates were drawn up for a two-fold purpose and while one of the benefits to be obtained through the new system will be the equalizing of rates for consumers, the main pur- pose is to make popular the use of electricity. The lighting company of ficials explain that their plant was constructed at great expense and is maintained by the expenditure of large sums of money. Although it is necessary to keep the workmen on duty "A hours a day, but a compara- tive small amount of electricity is used at any time other than between the hours of and 9 o'clock each evening.
 Plan is An Experiment.
 By the new plan, which is in the form of an experiment, the electric lighting company believes the use of their product will be encouraged and many of the labor saving devices, such as washing machines, coasters, electric heaters, etc., will be installed in homes. These devices will cause the plant to be operating "A hours a day instead of but a small portion of the time and this, the officials admit, is the desired end.
 Quigley Opposes Plans.
 Mayor Quigley says he opposes the rates on the ground that it is an i'm position upon the public to charge for the light the company might give if it was the desire of the public to use Y< l,3.. tinue to wage opposition to the rates and if the company cannot see it's way clear to draw up a schedule of an- other kind or leave the rates as they formerly stood, he will bring the matter to the common council for ac- ton. Tn the event Of that body see ing fit to offer resistance to the charges, a hearing. before the public utilities commission will be sought by the city. The city's chief executive explains that as the lighting company sought and was given power to build and operate a lighting system in this city, that company is compelled to light the city or give up it's franchise and it is within the powers of the citizens to say how much power they will buy and how they will buy it. Scores "Demand Charges
 The proposition to impose a. "de- mand charge" figured upon the floor space oI the buildings lighted by the company is not just one, Mayor Quigley says and even, aside from the fact that the principle is wrong, should every user turn on all the switches in sight the works would not stand the strain. This, however, is what is to be charged for, he says. If the electric lighting comp pany. is al- lowed to impose such charge the mayor can see no reason why the New Britain Gas Light company can not take just such steps and offer the same reason for such move. To stretch the point a bit further, the mayor points out that oil lamps are still used to a certain extent in some i homes and 1t is not beyond the power of the Standard Oil Co.,, under this same scheme to make a demand l charge"
 Must Be Shown.
 As explained by the officials, the "consumer charge' of 50 cents a month for each meter is for the pur- pose of paying the expenses of read l ing and testing meters and bookkeep. ing in the local office. Figuring that l there are 5000 meters, as the officials estimate, in the city, this would bring a revenue of $4,C0O each month ant Mayor Quigley must be convinced ,he says, that it costs anything like tha ] amount to run that branch of the l company's plant
 The rates for actual consumption of light has been reduced from |
 cents per kilowatt hour to cents pe1 kilowatt hour making it possible ant l attrac active for consumers to use mor,
 than twice as much power as hereto ! fore. The other charges, however ! continue to mount up and while tn
 company is trying it's experiment tn ] public is paying dearly, hence his ob
 iections Mayor Quigley says.