Religion and Ethics and Health BBS

Religion and Ethics and Health BBS
[ Religion and Ethics and Health BBS ]

Should it be illegal for utility companies to have stockholders?

Posted by scott on July 11, 2025, 9:00 am

Oregon's main gas and electric, while being " regulated by the government" have assets and equity in the billions... yet they lay off working people so " save money"...

Meanwhile our rates keep going up and up... they're willing to give a small % break, short term, to senior citizens...but certainly they can bear more.

Regulated, to me, just means those running the show have their portfolios deep in that market.

It's an interesting question... How much of that supply chain should be

Posted by Sprout on July 14, 2025, 1:58 pm, in reply to "Should it be illegal for utility companies to have stockholders?"

inherently governmental?

The local area utility that send you a bill only? So, their employees should be civil service employees? It's a question, not an answer.

How about distribution? The grid controllers? Should they be all civil service? It's a question, not an answer.

How about producers? Should the power plants themselves be government owned and government operated? No contractors? It's a question, not an answer.

How about the suppliers? Do the suppliers of fuels have to be government owned as well? It's a question, not an answer.

What percentage of the supply chain for energy should be inherently government to you?

Chain reaction. It starts with government owned grocery stores.

Posted by GOG on July 20, 2025, 8:48 am, in reply to "It's an interesting question... How much of that supply chain should be"

No. But they must be scrutinized and regulated. Profit motive

Posted by GOG on July 13, 2025, 11:29 am, in reply to "Should it be illegal for utility companies to have stockholders?"

is far superior to government incompetence and waste.

Mine is a so called coop,

Posted by Christopher Blackwell on July 11, 2025, 3:53 pm, in reply to "Should it be illegal for utility companies to have stockholders?"

But we still have no real say so in its operation, and the prices keep climbing.

Con Edison has been very very good to me

Posted by Mugwump on July 13, 2025, 12:06 pm, in reply to "Mine is a so called coop,"

I received a substantial (though not overwhelming) inheritance from a grandparent in the summer of 2001.
After 9/11 and into the new year interest rates plummeted and I ended up investing the entire sum in Con Edison because at the price I paid my dividend was about 6.75%
while savings interest and CD interest were almost non-existent. No offer has ever topped what I'm earning based on that initial investment and I continue to reap the benefits of reinvested funds.
I pay a portion of the ConEd bill for the shared NYC condo I use as a U.S. base, but that doesn't amount to much. I do note, however, that the "deliver" charge for electricity is 2.5 times the cost of the energy itself, which would anger me if I was not benefiting from my investment.

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[ Religion and Ethics and Health BBS ]