Save Our State

Save Our State (http://www.saveourstate.info/index.php)
-   Elections, Politics, and Partisanship (http://www.saveourstate.info/forumdisplay.php?f=13)
-   -   Cutting illegal immigrants off from power, literally (http://www.saveourstate.info/showthread.php?t=2478)

Jeanfromfillmore 07-01-2010 03:30 PM

Cutting illegal immigrants off from power, literally
 
Thursday's intriguing people
Barry Wong
The attorney and Republican candidate for the Arizona Corporation Commission says if he’s elected, the commission would require regulated utilities to check the immigration status of customers.
Wong, who was born in Phoenix to Chinese immigrant parents, told CNN on Wednesday, “Illegal immigrants use electricity that puts more demand on the system. If we continue to have the illegal population growing, the rate payers would have to shoulder the burden of the cost."
According to The Arizona Republic, commission members have the constitutional authority to regulate utilities such as the Arizona Public Service Co., Tucson Electric Power Co. and private water companies. Given the national debate over Arizona’s new immigration law, Senate Bill 1070, Wong told CNN he understands that his idea is controversial.
“There will be critics that will say, ‘Barry you’re very close to the immigration system. How can you advocate for this?’ But my parents, they came here under legal cover. They succeeded in America, working long hours in the grocery store and shunned assistance, and we took care of ourselves. Eventually they sent their four kids to college. I’m the last person to attack immigrants as a class in general.”
The Arizona Republic: Arizona's illegal immigrants should have utilities cut, candidate says
http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2010/07/01...ing-people-16/
Politician wants to pull the plug on utilities for immigrants
TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - If one Arizona politician gets his way, it could be "lights out" for illegal immigrants.
State Representative Barry Wong has served 4 terms and now he's running for the Arizona Corporation Commission. That's the body that oversees all utilities.
Wong said he wants to target illegal immigrants and stop providing them with water, electricity, and gas.
Wong told KGUN9 it all comes down to money. "The bigger picture is using up capacity, that would then drive power companies to build more expensive power plants."
Opponents think that Wong's idea isn't bright at all. KGUN9 tried to contact TEP to find out what impact illegal immigrants have but got no response from them. Wong's opponent , State Representative David Bradley had some thoughts of his own about Wong's concern over building new plants.
" It's kind of ludicrous. What's next? Are we going to cut off milk? Should we have Circle K not sell immigrants milk," Bradley asked.
The head of Public Services in Phoenix doesn't know how Wong would implement this law, and even Wong himself admitted that's a proper response for such a new idea.
This is one idea many hope never sees the light of day.
http://www.kgun9.com/Global/story.asp?S=12742356

Arizona immigration law backer politician Barry Wong wants to cut power from illegal immigrant homes
One Arizona politician has made a vow to make illegal immigrants powerless -- literally.
Republican Barry Wong, a candidate for the Arizona Corporation Commission, an elected body that decides public utility issues, says he would require the utilities to check the immigration status of customers, he told the Arizona Republic.
"I'm sure there will be criticism about human-rights violations," said Wong, who held a temporary spot on the five-person Commission in 2006. "Is power or natural gas or any type of utility we regulate, is that a right that people have? It is not a right. It is a service."
Cutting electricity, water, natural gas, even telephone lines at the homes of illegal immigrants, he said, would lower costs for the rest of the state's customers. He believes the population spike caused by illegal immigrants forces the state to build new power plants and then raise rates for customers.
Since 2000, Arizona's population has jumped nearly 29% to almost 6.6 million people. In roughly that same time, the number of the state's Hispanic residents increased and now composes more than 30% of Arizona's population, according to the U.S. Census.
This isn't the first time electricity surged into the immigration debate.
In May, after Los Angeles' City Council voted to boycott Arizona over its controversial anti-illegal immigration law, SB 1070, Gary Pierce, who sits on the Commission, suggested L.A. stop using his state's power.
Pierce, also a Republican, dismissed Wong's idea.
"That's not an argument I think we'll involve ourselves in," he said.
Critics, however, charge Wong with simply using a hot-button issue to gain notoriety and votes.
"Everyone is seeing the polls that are so anti-immigrant, and everyone is jumping on the bandwagon to target immigrants," said Julie Pace, a lawyer currently suing the state over a law punishing businesses that hire illegal immigrant help.
"They all are coming up with novel ideas how they can get elected. They say, 'Target immigrants, and it helps me win an election.'"
Wong believes his idea deserves further study.
"The question is: Is it the right thing to do in terms of rates?" Wong, a former four-term member of the state's House of Representatives, told the paper.
Arizona has come under fire for months for its efforts to battle illegal immigration, which was put under the national spotlight with the passage of SB 1070, which would allow law enforcement to ask suspects about their immigration status. However, the law which goes into effect July 29, has its supporters.
According to a recent Rasmussen poll, 71% of Arizona backs it, an increase from when Gov. Jan Brewer signed the bill in April.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/nati..._from_ill.html

Cutting illegal immigrants off from power, literally
If you’re in the country illegally, Barry Wong would like you not to have any power.
Wong, who’s a candidate for the Arizona Corporation Commission, is throwing out the idea of — if he’s elected — having the commission require those in the country illegally be barred from getting power from the utilities.
The feedback has been mixed. Wong said he’s received e-mails supporting the position to those who say he’d be flipping the switch on people in 112-degree weather.
The idea, Wong said, is in part an effort to keep rates low, and since the state has regulated illegals out of other services, why not power?
“That’s the crux of the issue,” he said. “The state has a policy that if you’re illegal you can’t get welfare benefits. There are models out there for something like this.”
Wong said his goal would be to study that model and come up with proposals. Even he admits the issue would be tricky because of two kinds of customers: those signing up for the first time for electricity and those already in the system. It’s the second group that have him getting e-mails accusing him of throwing people out in the heat as it were.
Wong said he doesn’t believe it would be the job of Arizona Public Service Co. or Tucson Electric Power Co. to enforce immigration laws. Wong said he wants to keep rates down and if there are fewer customers, it will reduce the utilities’ long-term needs, and thus keep rates lower.
At least that’s the theory.
The Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which is backing a federal effort to reform immigration laws and has backed Wong’s opponents in the Republican primary, is weighing in on the issue. This is a letter from Glenn Hamer, the group’s CEO and president.
“This proposal has raised serious questions over your beliefs about the government’s role in consumer transactions,” Hamer wrote. “What other transactions would you seek to limit based on immigration status? For example, should the Department of Weights and Measures seek to ensure that access to gas station pumps is limited to legal residents?
“While not your intention, you’ve demonstrated the folly of individual states attempting to craft their own immigration policies and exposed the consequences of a federal government that’s been unwilling to once and for all craft an immigration solution that secures our borders and strengthens our economy.”
The other problem point for any such move would be Salt River Project. It’s not regulated by the ACC. Only a move by the Legislature could make them deny service to illegals. Thus it would leave a theoretical loophole for any illegal immigrant wanting to stay in the Valley.
And renewables and solar were supposed to be the big issues in the ACC race.

Read more: Cutting illegal immigrants off from power, literally - Phoenix Business Journal


All times are GMT -8. The time now is 04:54 AM.

Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright SaveOurState ©2009 - 2016 All Rights Reserved