GOP trying to remove constitutional rights before session starts

In all my 26 years as a legislator, I have never seen a legislative rules proposal as potentially devastating to Montana citizen-ratepayers as Republican state Sen. Steve Fitzpatrick’s recent joint rule proposal. This rule would hamstring the Constitutional Office of the Consumer Counsel, which has worked for nearly 50 years to protect Montana consumers, especially in energy rate cases.

If adopted as a joint rule, the Counsel would be forbidden from testimony for or against a bill unless allowed by an affirmative vote of three out of four of the legislative Consumer Committee’s four members, all of which are appointed by the Republican House Speaker and Republican Senate Committee on Committees.

You may remember last session when the Counsel testified against and helped defeat legislation that would stick ratepayers with increased massive costs of owning a power plant including clean-up costs. Sponsor of that bill, also, was the same Sen. Fitzpatrick, who now chairs the Joint Rules Committee.

The rule is a violation of the Constitution, which states: “The Legislature shall provide for an office of consumer counsel which shall have the duty of representing consumer interests in hearings before the public service commission or any other successor agency.”

The stated agency Goals and Objectives for many years have been to “Represent Montana consumer interests in proceedings before the Public Service Commission. Represent Montana consumer interests in appropriate proceedings before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and other federal administrative agencies. Represent Montana consumer interests in appropriate state and federal court proceedings. Monitor proposed legislation and participate in the legislative process before the Montana Legislature for Montana consumers.”

This is exactly the help and oversight ratepayers and legislators have had with the very complex bills, rate cases and cost increases in energy coming our way. Fitzpatrick’s rule could change all that.

This rule must be revolutionarily pleasing to the regulated companies: no legislative testimony from the usual public adversary representing consumers and ratepayers.

On top of that, all members of the Public Service Committee are Republicans, a group that has been under fire for some time now as ineffective corporate lackeys, but with the power to grant rate increases. The PSC recently awarded rate increases for electricity and natural gas, with a much larger one now looming.

Now, this unparalleled pre-session rule move, without public input, could help shield the Republican PSC and legislators from long-standing state efforts to protect consumers, and might well cost citizens more than any and all other tax increases or fees this Legislature might pass. From the “regulated” company’s viewpoint, what could be better?

The new rules will be voted on the first day of the session in January. If this proposal makes it into the joint rules, the House has only one chance to stop it with a majority vote; after that it takes two thirds. The Senate could stop it with a majority vote.

“Changing the Constitution” is what some Republicans have been promising, but it isn’t supposed to happen without a vote of the people. Has the GOP now found a way to amend it even before the session begins?

It’s not too late yet. Call your legislator immediately and tell them not to “muzzle” your voice: that of the Consumer Counsel!

Hal Harper served 26 years in the Montana Legislature and is a former speaker of the House.