LibertarianLegend
Licensed Driver
What do you think about David Staples, the Libertarian candidate for Public Service Commission?
From the Issues section of his website:
Issues
There are a wide variety of issues that face the Public Service Commission in Georgia. When thinking about the issues, it is important to first consider the mission of the PSC:
The mission of the Georgia Public Service Commission is to exercise its authority and influence to ensure that consumers receive safe, reliable and reasonably priced telecommunications, transportation, electric and natural gas services from financially viable and technically competent companies.
Ethics
The number one issue in this race is ethics. Ethics is a non-partisan issue that everyone should agree on. When a Commissioner receives $10,000 in campaign contributions from the very attorneys presenting a case on behalf of a utility two days before that case is voted on, how can anyone assume that the Commissioner is going to be fair and unbiased? When a majority of a Commissioner’s campaign contributions come from the executives, lobbyists and attorneys of the very entities they are charged with regulating, how is that not a conflict of interest? When a Commissioner accepts $14,000 in gifts in just their current term, how are we supposed to believe that they remain neutral? Would you be surprised to find out that all of this describes the current incumbent of 18 years? It is time for a change in Georgia. On November 6th, I urge voters to say “enough is enough” by voting for David Staples. Together we can change how business is done at the Public Service Commission.
Free Markets
When one pays attention to the words of The Star Spangled Banner we see the words “land of the free” used to describe the wonderful country we live in. But how free are we really? Is a solar power company free to install solar panels on your residence while maintaining ownership and maintenance responsibilities for those panels and sell the on-site produced electricity back to you? Not in Georgia…
…read more…
Open and Transparent Government
When you want to know what is going on within an organization, what is one of the first places you look these days? For most people, the easy answer would be that you would check out their website. I must admit, the Public Service Commission has a rather nice looking website. But if you want to find the meeting minutes for the various meetings, where are they at? Are there recordings available that you can go back and watch? Most people are unable to attend the daytime meetings of the PSC, but with the technology available in today’s world, why are we not able to go back and see what really happened in these public meetings?
Fiscal Responsibility
As with most organizations, there is usually room for improvement in any area of operations. Looking at the general budget categories for the Public Service Commission, I think about a suggestion that I heard from a radio talk show host that I’ll leave unnamed. The suggestion was something along the lines of requiring an oath to be added to spending bills that stated that it is better to take the money from taxpayers to spend for that purpose than to let the taxpayer keep the money for themselves. When we talk about cutting wasteful government, are there areas within the PSC that can be streamlined or made to be more efficient? To start, if elected, I will immediately ask for a 10% pay cut. Georgia teachers have sacrificed, why not the PSC board as well?
From the Issues section of his website:
Issues
There are a wide variety of issues that face the Public Service Commission in Georgia. When thinking about the issues, it is important to first consider the mission of the PSC:
The mission of the Georgia Public Service Commission is to exercise its authority and influence to ensure that consumers receive safe, reliable and reasonably priced telecommunications, transportation, electric and natural gas services from financially viable and technically competent companies.
Ethics
The number one issue in this race is ethics. Ethics is a non-partisan issue that everyone should agree on. When a Commissioner receives $10,000 in campaign contributions from the very attorneys presenting a case on behalf of a utility two days before that case is voted on, how can anyone assume that the Commissioner is going to be fair and unbiased? When a majority of a Commissioner’s campaign contributions come from the executives, lobbyists and attorneys of the very entities they are charged with regulating, how is that not a conflict of interest? When a Commissioner accepts $14,000 in gifts in just their current term, how are we supposed to believe that they remain neutral? Would you be surprised to find out that all of this describes the current incumbent of 18 years? It is time for a change in Georgia. On November 6th, I urge voters to say “enough is enough” by voting for David Staples. Together we can change how business is done at the Public Service Commission.
Free Markets
When one pays attention to the words of The Star Spangled Banner we see the words “land of the free” used to describe the wonderful country we live in. But how free are we really? Is a solar power company free to install solar panels on your residence while maintaining ownership and maintenance responsibilities for those panels and sell the on-site produced electricity back to you? Not in Georgia…
…read more…
Open and Transparent Government
When you want to know what is going on within an organization, what is one of the first places you look these days? For most people, the easy answer would be that you would check out their website. I must admit, the Public Service Commission has a rather nice looking website. But if you want to find the meeting minutes for the various meetings, where are they at? Are there recordings available that you can go back and watch? Most people are unable to attend the daytime meetings of the PSC, but with the technology available in today’s world, why are we not able to go back and see what really happened in these public meetings?
Fiscal Responsibility
As with most organizations, there is usually room for improvement in any area of operations. Looking at the general budget categories for the Public Service Commission, I think about a suggestion that I heard from a radio talk show host that I’ll leave unnamed. The suggestion was something along the lines of requiring an oath to be added to spending bills that stated that it is better to take the money from taxpayers to spend for that purpose than to let the taxpayer keep the money for themselves. When we talk about cutting wasteful government, are there areas within the PSC that can be streamlined or made to be more efficient? To start, if elected, I will immediately ask for a 10% pay cut. Georgia teachers have sacrificed, why not the PSC board as well?