* WARNING: THIS IS AN UNOFFICIAL, INTRODUCTORY COPY OF THE BILL.
THE OFFICIAL COPY CONSIDERED BY THE CITY COUNCIL IS THE FIRST READER COPY.
INTRODUCTORY*
CITY OF BALTIMORE
COUNCIL BILL R
(Resolution)
Introduced by: President Dixon, Councilmembers Young, Kraft
A RESOLUTION ENTITLED
A COUNCIL RESOLUTION concerning
Title
Baltimore Municipal Electric Company - Preliminary Feasibility Study - Funding
FOR the purpose of requesting the Director of Finance to identify a funding source to advertise Request For Proposals (RFPs ) for qualified engineering and law firms to perform a preliminary feasibility study of establishing a Baltimore City municipal public power utility.
Body
Recitals
On Wednesday, June 28, 2006, the City Council Committee of the Whole heard testimony on Council Bill 06-0160R- Investigative Hearing - Publicly Owned Municipal Electric Company - for the purpose of exploring, with the expertise of the Departments of Finance and Public Works, the feasibility of developing a publicly owned municipal electric utility to provide service to Baltimore City residents at a more reasonable rate than the expected increased rate that current service providers will offer.
The Department of Finance presented testimony that a study of municipal electric aggregation, the method by which the local government buys electric power on behalf of consumers within their borders, should include: (1) analysis of types of electric purchasing and risk tolerance to consumers; (2) in-depth comparison of aggregation options; (3) study of leverage and cost of adding green energy to purchases; (4) investigation of legal authority; (5) licensure approval and regulation requirement of the Public Service Commission; and (6) the need for local ordinance to establish an enterprise fund and utility.
Testimony presented by the American Public Power Association, a non-partisan organization of the nation's more than 2,000 not-for-profit, community- and state- owned electric utilities, gave detailed requirements for information that would determine the net benefits that could be realized by a city and its citizens from establishing a publicly owned electric utility. Cost estimations based on the size of the community, the type and condition of resources needed to serve the community, travel expenses required by the consultant, and the length, scope, and formality of the final report presentation indicated that a municipal utility district with a population of 700,000 spent $150,000 to properly study its potential role as an electric utility.
Based on the City's information needs, the size of our population, and the current professional market rates, testimony indicates that the Department of Finance needs to set aside a minimum of $150,000 to fund the subject RFPs.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF BALTIMORE, That the Director of Finance is requested to identify a funding source to advertise Request For Proposals (RFPs) for qualified engineering and law firms to perform a preliminary feasibility study of establishing a Baltimore City municipal public power utility.
AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be sent to the Mayor, the Director of Finance, the City Solicitor, the Director of Public Works, and the Mayor's Legislative Liaison to the City Council.
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