1) How have electrical rates affected you in the last few years? Irrigation "surcharges" for our farm increased our electrical costs 25% for 2008, over the previous six years.
2) Remember Malheur County's poverty rate is 17%, the highest in Oregon. We are considered a marginal income area.
3) Malheur County's customer base is a great deal smaller than Idaho's and has not grown in 20 years. This is an agriculture-based economy, and it will not be changing soon, due to Oregon's strict land use laws.
4) As documented in this blog, electricity use has fallen across the country because of the recession. A 44% increase over last year's surcharges on our business, and 22% increase in our household electrical bill, will be a blow to our ability to hire and purchase locally. These rates do not go down, as other market-driven fuel and food costs do.
If you can't make it to the open house to turn in your oral or written comments, please leave comments online at http://apps.puc.state.or.us/commentIdahoPower/message.htm
Make sure you thank the Oregon PUC for responding to our request to hold the hearing in Ontario!!
