Subscribe now

End Avista monopoly

If you have looked at this month’s Avista bill, you will notice at the top where it says that “effective March 1, 2012, that the overall natural gas rates decreased about 6 percent resulting from a cost adjustment filing.”

Natural gas prices fell about 50 percent from about $5 to $2.50 last summer and you get 6 percent! Prices didn’t fall yesterday. So, they have billed you through the entire winter heating season when they were required by law to adjust prices according to actual market. This is not an isolated example, and only surfaced when they got caught! Avista has a history of deception and dishonesty. In 2001, they got a 20 percent surcharge due to a temporary spike in prices, which lasted almost 10 years.

It is easy to change a for-profit private monopoly into a public utility district like they have in Seattle and other areas. It only requires a simple majority vote, which should be easy to get. End the Avista monopoly now!

David Smith

Post Falls

Letters policy

The Spokesman-Review invites original letters on local topics of public interest. Your letter must adhere to the following rules:

  • No more than 250 words
  • We reserve the right to reject letters that are not factually correct, racist or are written with malice.
  • We cannot accept more than one letter a month from the same writer.
  • With each letter, include your daytime phone number and street address.
  • The Spokesman-Review retains the nonexclusive right to archive and re-publish any material submitted for publication.

Unfortunately, we don’t have space to publish all letters received, nor are we able to acknowledge their receipt. (Learn more.)

Submit letters using any of the following:

Our online form
Submit your letter here
Mail
Letters to the Editor
The Spokesman-Review
999 W. Riverside Ave.
Spokane, WA 99201
Email
editor@spokesman.com
Fax
(509) 459-3815
Phone
(509) 459-5430

Read more about how we crafted our Letters to the Editor policy