Montana urged to plan in case utility collapses

[Ediacara]

Thursday, July 10, 2003

Montana urged to plan in case utility collapses
By MIKE DENNISON
Tribune Capitol Bureau

HELENA -- With bankruptcy of NorthWestern Corp. a strong possibility, state officials should start planning how best to maintain the company's Montana electric and gas utility system, a former state commerce director said Wednesday.
Gary Buchanan, a Billings investment adviser, also said public ownership of the system serving 300,000 Montana customers should be considered.

"You have an obligation to preserve those assets and preserve our business climate that was needlessly given away by this deregulation debacle," he told the Montana Public Service Commission.

"Deregulation has nearly destroyed Montana's business climate," he said. "I speak as a businessman, who like thousands of others have been hurt by these policies."

More at the Great Falls Tribune

[lcordero]

1. I never thought that a businessman would be complaining---

about deregulation.

Public ownership does seem attractive.

[Code_Name_D]

2. Are you kidding? They never should have deregulated.

Add another deregulation failer to the pile folks. But not to wory, the bullshit pile will get higher too.

[cprise]

3. Whoa...

"Deregulation has nearly destroyed Montana's business climate,"

People are getting brave! That sort of talk wasn't allowed a few years ago. (At least, I don't think any newspaper would have reprinted it.)

[Ediacara]

4. The Great Falls Tribune

is a pretty good newspaper, as Montana papers go. In any other state, it would probably be considered mediocre in content..... but it does seem to get some major scoops that the other papers in the state totally miss, like this story for example....

[TEXASYANKEE]

5. 60 Minutes

I think 60 Minutes (Steve Kroft) did a story about this several months ago? Did anyone else see it?