TVPPA released the following statement in response to a June 21 report on an Office of Management and Budget plan that reiterates a Trump Administration proposal to sell TVA transmission assets:
The Tennessee Valley Public Power Association is disappointed and frustrated at the provision of the Office of Management and Budget’s reorganization plan that reiterates a proposal to sell TVA transmission assets. These assets have already been paid for by customers, and any sale to a private entity would amount to a transfer of wealth from those customers.
Selling TVA assets has been rejected by previous administrations after independent studies showed the current public power model best serves customers in the Valley. Just this month, the House voted unanimously to explicitly reject the proposal that appeared in the FY19 Budget request, and the Senate is poised to pass an Energy and Water appropriations bill that does the same.
We are thankful to Congress for opposing this harmful policy and recognizing the value consumers receive from the public power business model.
Ratepayers deserve better than the mixed messages coming out of the Administration on this issue. Last month, we heard that the Department of Energy was no longer considering divestiture. Now it appears to be back on OMB’s priority list. Here in the Valley, we see first-hand how the “for sale” sign on TVA assets affects the prices we pay and the climate for attracting business.
It is time for the Administration to drop this misguided attempt to raise revenue by selling assets that belong to customers in the Valley.
Here’s the full plan: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Government-Reform-and-Reorg-Plan.pdf (see p 66).