Norwich bulletin., 1921-02-16
COUNCIL TO EXERCISE CONTROL OVER
 GAS & ELECTRIC COMMISSIONERS
Explains Urr,ues commission rowers

Explains Urniries commission rowers i
 Mayor Lerou asked Corporation Coun-
 sel Higgins to explain what would hap, pen if the public utilities commission l should order new pipes laii In response Mir. Higgins stated that If
 this proposed bill should be passed he could see all manner of questions coming
 up as to conflicts in Jurisdiction. 1 In some respects now the mayor and 1 the common council have greater power
 over the gas and electric commission that the public utilities commission over the privately owned public utilities compan-
 ies. The public utilities commission would not operate the city plant if this bill should go through. They do exercise certain supervisory bowers, make inspec-
 t1ons, conduct hearings on complaints as to quality of service, rates or additions. T They don't finance any plant. They don't I go in and say you ought to install an- lother generator or transformers, but they ] do issue orders and fix penalties that knight be severe.
 Suppose, said Mir Higgins, the public Il utilities commission should order some
 thing that meant an expense of $75,0o0. We decide we won't furnish the funds. I don't know what would result then.
 can't imagine the public utilities com
 mission penalizing the mayor In other words, you have two sovereignties. It
 was never in the minds of the legisla- tors to have municipally owned plants controlled by the public utilities commits
 sion! They are expressly excluded in the
 statute. But this bill attempts in one fell swoop to change this. At present
 the citizens of Norwich can appeal to
 their commissioners and the mayor and : the common council can make requests for information. You have the control
 now.
 The corporation counsel referred to the : makeup of the public utilities commits sion, all residents in other parts of the | state, and asked what good purpose would be served by petitioning them for , a lot of things we think ought to be | different. The mayor and the common 2 council can function in the matter of e hearings In fact it has more power . over the city commission that the public 5 utilities commissioners have over pri- 3 vately owned plants.
 As to publicity, it is provided that re- :. ports have to be made to the public util- = tics commission that cover a lot of detail g not applicable to municipally owned n plants. Under the present law the city t commissioners are to make report to the r mayor and common council and can bt s called upon for special reports. d You've got tribunal now in the com.
 mon council, under the statutes, and
 dllcE all IS c6lQ dnu uOnCg lfld ~ the municipality would be surrenderinl some of it's rights if it should support
 this proposed bill. The taxing powe ought to have some control.
 ,f Looking For Information.
 MT. Robbins spoke again, saying tha
 he was not to be understood as eithe V. opposing or favoring the proposed bill if He was looking for light on the subject if and from what MT. Higgins had said i If did not seem advisable to have the bil = passed. Mir. Robbins said he was glat ,- to read in the morning paper the list 0 ar questions which Mayor Lerou had sent t l the gas and electrical commissioners am 10 he thought they would throw much ligh Ii on the subject, when they were answer Id ed, as he hoped they would be in reas l. enable time. (Applause). B An Active Administration. 1. Mayor Lerou again addressed tn a meeting, saying that for long time bt st fore he was mayor he had realized tha the responsibility had rested with tn common council. The trouble had bee Sb that no previous mayor and council ha bt exercised the right they had. Applause or Someone may ask why the present cour ha cil has not done anything till now. 5e think you will recognize, said the mayo
 that since the first of June this has bee m a fairly active administra tion. (Al he plause.) Considerable has been dor of and considerable remains to be don ar The citizens want more publicity. (Al
 plause.) It was with this idea that u it letter to MT. Shea was drafted and a a satisfied we will get the informatio n- This is no attack on the commissioner ,er There is no suggestion of graft. W fer want to get the best out of this plan i'd which we own, and I gIve you my wol he that l will get the necessary informs IT, tion.
 he President Shea Answers.
 President Shea responded to the ma 1r. or by saying that the commissions It. unanimously agreed with what he hs Tor already said. He wished to correct il ty. impression that the commissioners hi ed held back information and he said tn or these were the first questions that hs TOT ever been directed to the commission F 'ee, promised that they would be answer, ;il' as well as the commission knew how
 answer them.
 ne To question from William Fitzgeral sts Mayor Lerou answered that this propos ter bill had been up before the legislatu d eight years ago and he did not kno 'I who had introduced the bill now. Ter Frederick G. Jackson. who lives oh Broadway and is a chemist at the su
 marine base, asked if the city gas Ter graded now on candle power or he 'e- units, as he said that candle power gra on ing was out of date and useless and c to pensive.
 by Superintendent Taggart answered tn ,se the heat unit Tneasurement was used he llc but because of the oil and coal the sar
 quality gas cannot be furnished as fo on merly. Norwich is trying to keep t " heat unit up higher than the requireme ne in the state, but it is hard job. 'ed To further question from Mir. Jac ms son as to why it was necessary to adju ise the gas stove mixers so much now, N leu Taggart said there had been trouble wi or- variable pressure.
 Rev. J. H. Selden interposed an inqui me as to whether the support of the propos !e bill was the only question before u ny meeting, as he said he thought we we os- deeply ignorant about this bill but 'uS had quite an opinion about the gas 1n. S,, were getting.
 ion Can't Boil an EEg.
 to c. Edward Carpenter of the Carpen we Mfg. Co. on Newton street asked if tn, our was any hope of getting better gas
 the West Side in the next ten years.
 the present time, he said, he could l
 boil an egg for breakfast at his hot
 without telephoning around to the neiy
 bors to shut off their gan. And at
 factory when the gas Is turned on
 only thing they get is a bad smell = MT. Shea answered that pipe had b, bought from the compressed air comps ~. and it is expected to use this for n ,es pipes on the West Side this summer any i = 11;e' tS;e ,,Sioo. i,a' I,.. ne na9 Al,,& AF,- IL