Opinion from Los Angeles Times – Article by Jim Newton
L.A. voters approved the creation of a ratepayer advocate in March. There still isn’t one. So the City Council should make the decision now on a proposed rate hike.
For Los Angeles to meet its legal obligations and provide for a more sustainable energy and water future, rates must go up. Soon.
The City Council doesn’t like to acknowledge that because it knows there are few more predictable ways to raise the ire of Angelenos than to tinker with power and water rates. That’s why the council, after its last dust-up with the Department of Water and Power, put a measure before voters to establish a city ratepayer advocate. Voters overwhelmingly approved that measure in March.
