53 



WESTERN PUBLIC AGENCIES GROUP TESTIMONY BEFORE 



BONNEVILLE POWER ADMINISTRATION TASK FORCE 



COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES 



U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 



October 28, 1993 



Introduction 



Good morning. My name is Jim Sherrill and I am the Manager of Parkland Light and 

 Water Company. I am testifying this morning on behalf of the Western Public Agencies Group. 



The Western Public Agencies Group is an association of 14 publicly owned utilities 

 located in Washington State. These utihties rely on Bonneville for the bulk of their power 

 supply to serve half a million customers. The Western PubUc Agencies Group purchases 25 

 percent of the power sold by Bonneville to publicly owned utilities. 



My testimony will provide the perspectives of these utilities on the possible refinancing 

 of Bonneville's debt and changing Bonneville's legal status. 



Refinancing Bonneville Debt 



Because Bonneville has borrowed money over a long time period, some of its debt carries 

 low interest rates. These low interest rates, coupled with budgetary and deficit reduction 

 pressures, have resulted in repeated efforts to accelerate Bonneville's repayment obligations. 

 Although each of these initiatives has been defeated, a great deal of time and effort is expended 

 in the process, to no one's benefit. 



Current market conditions offer an opportunity to resolve this issue to everyone's benefit. 

 The Western Public Agencies Group would support legislation giving Bonneville a one-time 



