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Work for Public Power in your area. The State of California had the legal right to take over the whole electricity system, from the power plants to the distribution grid to the lines that run into our homes. This would have given us back control over 80% to 85% of the electricity we need and allowed us to dramatically reduce our reliance on out-of-state power. Gov. Davis refused to do this, even though he had said that the deregulated, free-market electricity system is a "colossal and dangerous disaster". Now he is known as "Governor Give-Away".
Ideal solutions   |  Public Power explained

Giving away our money! Davis and the state legislature authorized $400 million to buy electricity at these outrageous prices. Then he wanted to sign long-term contracts (up to ten years!) at prices roughly double those of a year ago. This would cost the state BILLIONS that should go to schools and health care and get nothing in return. He finally started offering to buy the grid, but at twice its value. This was obviously a further bailout, but the energy corporations tried to camouflage this by publicly calling him a Marxist!

Are they lying?   YES! PG&E still produces half its own electricity ... which it sells to itself at the same outrageous prices the out-of-state price gougers do! Hard to believe but true. PG&E owes half its debt to ITSELF!!! Now, power producers are inappropriately citing increased demand to justify building new plants, while the fact is that demand in California is on par with previous years.

Maybe, but only because they got the federal government to declare that California could not make them sell off their billions in out-of-state assets to cover their debts. PG&E is laying off lower-level employees while the power company CEO's "earn" millions per year.   | Listen to an audio expose

Deregulation allowed private, for-profit, out-of-state corporations (Duke, Enron, etc.) to corner the market on electricity and drive up prices by 10 times in the past year.   More factors: bad planning, mismanagement, and greed.
Listen to interview with energy activist Harvey Wasserman. | For the $2 billion spent in the first quarter of 2001, we could have bought all the plants that the utilities sold to private companies that are now gouging us. | Deregulation price tag: $40 billion

2/24/01 Rally in SF: Medea Benjamin | Brian Belknap | George Vouros
2/11/01 Teach-In: Teatro Campesino video Off tha Grid, audio Tim Redmond of SFBG
2/9/01: Governor Davis' solution: Environmental Destruction

10/11/01 Approximately 2,500 people attended the People Have the Power rally 1 | 2 in San Francisco. Speakers from a variety of organizations spoke in favor of the creation of a Municipal Utility District.