Regulator denies Nevada Power union charges

A union advertisement criticizing the restructuring of the electrical power industry in Nevada and the legislators who voted for it is "full of misinformation, inaccuracies and incorrect assumptions," a state regulator said.

Judy Sheldrew, chairman of the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada, said the ad, placed by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers locals in Las Vegas and Walnut Creek, Calif., was probably an effort to influence some legislative races this year.

But Sheldrew said it also left a wrong impression with the public about the state's bid to restructure the industry by Jan. 1, 2000.

Jim Anzinger, business manager and financial secretary for the IBEW Local 396 in Las Vegas, said the ad represented an educational effort.

The IBEW scheduled a news conference late this morning to discuss the campaign.

Anzinger said deregulation efforts in California have not been effective in reducing power rates and that the union wanted Nevadans to be aware of the pending change before it takes effect.

"We want and hope individuals will ask questions before deregulation takes place in Nevada," Anzinger said. "We think the public has the right to understand the issue and not wait until the last minute. There has been no real effort on the part of the Legislature to educate the public so we're doing so. The Legislature waited far too long."

The union also is distributing a 15-minute video, "Power Switch," about deregulation.

Anzinger said there are several issues involved in the switch to a competitive environment, mandated by a law approved by the Legislature and signed by Gov. Bob Miller in 1997. Among the issues: potential job losses and rates.

"There's a pretty good chance your rates will increase," Anzinger said.

The union contends the two existing Nevada utilities, Nevada Power Co. in Southern Nevada and Sierra Pacific Resources in Northern Nevada, will not be able to serve existing customers.

The IBEW says it represents 1,200 Nevada Power employees, mostly substation workers, linemen and clerks, and 800 Sierra Pacific workers.

Sheldrew said the only change for Nevada Power and Sierra Pacific is that they may have to compete through an affiliate.

The commission is presently considering rules governing affiliate operations.

The affiliate rules are being established to guarantee the established utilities would not have an unfair competitive advantage over new entries in the market through name recognition. The utilities oppose having to operate through utilities, contending they have spent millions of dollars to bolster that name recognition.

archive