Power Rates Charged by the Southwestern Power Administration Statement on Signing S. 2249 Into Law.

I am pleased to sign today S. 2249, a bill which will prohibit discrimination based on distance from the source of power in rates charged by the Southwestern Power Administration, an agency of the Department of Energy.

The main purpose of the bill is to provide for termination of a transmission service charge levied upon Associated Electric Cooperative, Inc., of Springfield, Missouri. The bill permits the Southwestern Power Administration to renegotiate all aspects of its contract with this cooperative to more correctly reflect the value of services rendered, while continuing the current practice of charging different rates for different classes of service. The transmission charge will be terminated upon completion of the new contract. Finally, S. 2249 does not prohibit the Southwestern Power Administration from recovering the transmission service charges levied prior to the effective date of the act.

Senator Eagleton, the chief sponsor of the bill, deserves credit for his hard work in developing this legislation, which will contribute to the resolution of a longstanding dispute between a Missouri electric cooperative and the Southwestern Power Administration.