To the editor: Some letter writers have recently voiced the opinion that private electric utilities should be publicly owned. But converting private utilities to public ownership is not easy.
No large private utility company is going to sell out willingly to the government, so the government would have to use the power of eminent domain. Under the law of eminent domain, the property of a private utility is considered to already be devoted to a public use.
State law requires a government entity trying to acquire private electric, gas or water utility property to show why its public use of the property is more necessary than the existing public use under private ownership. This is not an easy requirement to meet.
Even if the government could make the necessary showing, it would have to pay billions of taxpayer dollars for the utility’s property. And while it is nice to think otherwise, there is no guarantee that public ownership would result in better operation and management.
If a public electric utility operates in a manner that results in a fire, any damages would be paid from taxpayer or ratepayer funds. At least with privately owned utilities, there are shareholders who can bear the expense, as the California Public Utilities Commission should require if the Eaton fire is Southern California Edison’s fault.
June Ailin Sewell, Marina del Rey
The writer is an attorney with experience in the eminent domain field.
