The Wyandotte news-herald. (Wyandotte, Mich.) 1943-1963, 1945-08-27
Continued from Page ID

plant. Any surplus profits belong
to the light users. not the taxpay-
erS.
3. The City must pay the Com
mission for Street Lighting and
Hydrant service just as though it
were purchasing these services
from a privately owned utility.
What is NOT clear and under
standable is why the Mayor, Council
and Municipal Service Commission
continue to deliberately ignore the
city charter and mandate of the
people. The Mayor and Council
have refused to pay the Commission
the 1944-45 street lighting and hy-
drant service bill, in the amount of
S98, 1000. Thus denying light con-
Sumers an additional Is per cent
dividend.
Thus also. saving the largest in
dustrieS and taxpayers around $50
600 in taxes, at the entire expense
of the light users. The Commission
has lacked the courage or desire
to compel the city to make pay
ment-by Court action if necessary.
A plain dereliction of its duty as
Trustees of the Light and Water
Departments, for the use and ben
eft of the users.
The new 1945-46 scheme to evade
and circumvent the mandate Of
the City Charter and the people
strikes a new low for the regard
which some public officials hold for
their Oath of Office. An open dec
laration of moral bankruptcy. Ger
tainly such doings must offend the
sense of fairness of every right
thinking citizen.
The most daring and reprehen-
sible scheme ever attempted to be
put over on the people is revealed
by reading the minutes of The
Municipal Service Commission
meeting held on August 13. 1945.
On July %, l945, the Commission
by resolution submitted its Budget
requirements for l945-46 to the
Mayor and Council, requesting $751;
1892 for Street lighting and hy-
drant service. The previous year
these services were billed to the
city at $4,000. If purchased from
private utility these services would
cost we'll over $4,000.
On July "a. 1915 the Council by
unanimous resolution requested
that the Commission charge the
City only $4,000 for these services
Thus substituting its opinion for
matter within the exclusive juris-
diction and duty of the Commits
sion.
Commissioner Milne then intro
duced a resolution reducing the
Commissions request to $1,000 and
asking that the request of July Is
for ssh, 1892 be rescinded.
The vote on this resolution was:
Yeas: Commissioners Engfehr
Milne.
Nays: Commissioners Danna,
Garner. Somheil.
Resolution defeated.
A new resolution was offered by
Commissioner Garner TO accept the
Council offer of $1,000. The vote on
this resolution was:
Yeas: Commissioners Engfehr,
Garner, Milne.
Nays: Commissioners D'anna, SOM
he'll.
Note: - Only three CD Commits
sionerS bowed to the dictate from
the City Hall. These same three are
employees of large Corporations
who are also large taxpayers, but
who happen TO be insignificant
purchasers of power from the NUM-
cipal Light Plant. Yet these Cor
porations stand to gain the most
from a scheme which shifts the
cost of street lighting and hydrant
service onto the consumers.
This action is in direct contra
vention of the city charter which
provides as follows: (Section go
leach year the Commission shall
transmit to the Council its esti-
mate of the amount of money re-
quired for its purpose for the next
fiscal year, which amounts shall
| include the amounts to be charged
the city at large for hydrant serv-
ice, water furnished public insti-
tutiOnS street lighting and
services for which the city should
have to pay if it were purchasing
water or current from a privately
owned public service Corporation"
Up until 1882 the City paid the
Commission for these services. The
Wilcox opinion to the Commission
under date of August IS, 1914 says:
ut is a general rule of Law that
a Municipal Utility cannot charge
rates so high that the surplus can
be used to pay strictly taxpayer
obligations. There is no reason fol-
instance, why users Of water OF