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| HYDRO LEGISLATION | 'Great Savings Reported in Central Ontario | System ~ PROMISE 14 YEARS OLD A Cistinct benefit to municipalities in the Contral Ontario Eloctric Power System is given under legislation in-- troduced in the Legislature yesterday by Hon. John R. Cooke, Hydro Commis-- sioner. Th bi'l provides an extensive saving for municipalities in that dis-- trict. Sponsoring the measure Hon. Mr. Cocke recalled the tact that the Prov-- ince purchased what was then known as the Contral Ontario Power Systemmn owned and operated by ther Seymour Power Company with the object of placing the service on ths sams basis as the Ontario Hydro. The company was charging a flat rate of cight cents par k.w.h. for domestic sarvice. Rates Cut in Half. Negotiations were conducted by the then Minister of Crown Lands, Hon. G. H. Ferguson, now Premier of Ontario. The purchase price was $8,350,000 and the Province gave 4 per cent. bonds in oxchange. Within a few months the Commission cut the existing rates in «_ _ half to about four cents per k.w.h. | 4j Continuing, Hon. Mr. Cooke pointed out that the savings in these various . municipalities up to 1926, were as follows: Belleville, $862,202; Bowman-- ville, $311,473; Brighton, $19,860; Co--| bourg, $335.454; Deseronto, $22,583; | Lindsay, $216193; Millbrook, $4,245; | Napanse, $218,893; Newburgh, $27,369; | Newcastle, $14,130; Orono, $6,062; Oshawa, $972,972; Port Hops, $208,006; | Trenton, $252,385; Tweed, $35,588;| total, $3,507,420. | "Since that the additional saving has! been, up to the present time, I would | Jjudge, somewhere in the neighborhood | of $1,000,000, or a total saving to date | of about $4,500,000," he said. "But the Ccmmission has done more than that. Although those municipalitiee did not own the system, had not assumed a dollar of liability or responsibility in any way, nor had they invested five cents either for the distributing plants nor for their own local distributing sys-- tems, the Commission went on building up reserves, not to the extent, it is true, that they would have in other systems, which would enter into a partnership at cost, but they had built up sub-- stantial reserves to the extent of about $2,500,000, of which, I think, about $1,700,000 is in actual liquid assets, ail of which the Government now propose to hand over to the municipalities with the system. Get All Reserves. "That is, with its actual physical values and investments, there will also go to the municipalities all the reserves, so that the Government of this Proy-- ince is keeping today the promise which was made to the municipalities 14 years ago. "One can sse at a glance that, through the operation of the Commis-- sicn, there have been saved, I say, $4,500,000 in decreased rates, plus a' reserve of $2,500,000, which is ap--| proaching very closely to the actual ecst of the system at that time." |