10/11/2024
Hey, I'm going to get all geeky on your a** because I still have a part-time job at Puget Sound Solar as the government affairs guy, but stick with me; this is an interesting story about the past and the present.
Back in the 1920's you got your electricity from a utility that was owned by holding companies and investors in New York. Rates were high and you couldn't get power in rural areas. Enter the Grange, and the IBEW, and their public power initiative which was passed by the voters. There were fights along the way to its passage into law in 1930 by the WA Legislature. The law provided a way for a public utility to condemn the assets of the for-profit utility in its area and take it over. Half of the public utilities in Washington were formed this way, and the other half through negotiations, the most recent being Jefferson PUD in 2010 (!!) Yes, this law is still alive and kicking. The same year that Jefferson County voted to form an electric utility, Skagit county came within 1,500 votes of doing the same. Vashon attempted recently but their effort failed.
To get the gory details, you can read all about it in Ken Billington's book People Politics and Public Power. Happy Public Power Week!
