Where The Money Goes.

Quoted from this year’s City budget document.

The Carthage Water & Electric Plant’s (CW&EP) budget consists of the operations of the municipal water, wastewater and electric operations. These include administration, communications, distribution, production, collection and treatment of the various services provided by the utilities. The budget for this year continues to provide for the collection of the payment in lieu oftaxes (PILOT) and the Transfer from the utilities to the General Revenue Fund. The level ofthe transfer amount had been discussed by CW &EP and the City in conjunction with the recommended rate increases in Fiscal 2006. An amount of transfer and PILOT payment had been agreed to by the City and CW &EP as a result ofthose meetings. A PILOT and transfer level of approximately 6.6% of operating revenues has been included in the budget figures. The City has budgeted $1,345,000 which is further divided into $425,000 from the PILOT payment and $920,000 as transfers. The numbers presented in CW &EP’ s budget are higher than these numbers in the City’s budget. This is due to the fact that the additional funds generated will be used by CW &EP for debt service payments on the west side sewer project. CW &EP’s budget for 2011 is predicated on no rate adjustments. In Fiscal year 2006, the Council approved a recommended rate increase for electric of approximately 15.9% plus the establishment of a Purchased Power Adjustment (PPA). The PPA was designed to pass the fluctuation in purchase power cost in excess of the base rate onto the customers. These steps were taken to halt the depletion of CW&EP reserves which were paying for the extraordinary costs of purchase power from operations. The reserves had been depleted below what the Board of CW &EP felt were acceptable. Although the 2009 electric adjustment is "revenue neutral," it will lower the PP A portion of the customer’s bill but increase rate structure. The PP A reduction will equal the amount ofthe rate structure increase. CW &EP is continuing to position itselfto meet the challenges that may be posed by the challenges of the electric industry. The Utility progresses to work to serve the needs of the City in a competitive environment by identifying the future needs and desires of the customers. To accomplish those goals, CW &EP needs to become competitive and able to operate in a rapidly changing high tech environment. Overall, CW &EP’ s budget continues to provide for capital improvements to the systems. CW&EP’s summary budget is attached as Appendix II. The Electric Department’s fiber optics project will aid in positioning CW &EP to meet its customers’ needs now and when restructuring of the electric industry is fmalized.

I like eggs cooked over medium. All that really means is that it is all cooked. Seems there are more definitions of what constitutes a cooked egg than there are fry cooks. What seems amazin’ is the fact that they all got together and figured out ‘xactly what each definition means.

Over easy used ta be how I’d order eggs. All the sudden that meant the white wasn’t quite cooked. Over medium get that accomplished. The yoke sometimes gets a little over done, but that’s a small sacrifice.

I’d have ta guess that anyone who’s successful in the political arena is good at crackin’ eggs so the yoke doesn’t break. Even when ya want scrambled eggs, ya want to start out with a good solid yoke.

Political ideas that get just dropped in the pan end up splattered on the walls.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

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Weekly Columns

artCentral

ART NOTES from Hyde House

by Sally Armstrong, Director of artCentral

If you are a barbeque lover, you may know what "burnt ends" are in sandwiches—the chrispy, chewey ends that are left on the cutting board of the larger pieces of meat, and they are my favorite! Today’s column is my "burnt ends"—a bit of a hodge podge, so bear with me. I first want to mention what is on artCentral’s front burner that being the Annual Membership that opens Friday night with the picnic supper outside and the indoor art exhibition of 60 of our member artists. The show is displayed, the judges have both been here and made their selections, and I am very excited for those in attendance to first get the news of whose work won first, second, third and the Underwriter’s awards for 2010. It was a hard choice, and our judge from Springfield, Sally Baird, was in quite a quandary for her number three, but finally made her selection. I want to remind everyone that we will begin serving at 6:00 Friday night, and are usually still going a bit past 8:00 if you can stop by. artCentral supplies the main dishes, guests are asked to bring a favorite dessert to share, and donations are accepted to help defray the costs. A last year’s attendee told me that she just feasted on the huge selection of yummy desserts, so if that is your desire, feel free! Secondly, I am still receiving a number of registrations for our kid’s artCamp that is the next main event scheduled to begin July 19th, so please if you intend to enroll a child let us hear from you. Applications are available both here on our front porch, or at the Carthage Public Library. This year’s camp will feature a new kid’s art show that will be exhibited on Sunday the 25th, another of our "25" events new this year. Lastly, we are pleased to have installed a new window unit air conditioner in the Pottery House that should make the ladies painting classes more comfortable, and our main central air unit here in the main building gave up the ghost this week, but we are having a new unit installed in house as well, so all who attend this weekend should be cool and comfortable. Should make our artCamp kids happier too! Hope to see everyone Friday night at the opening, and remember that this show remains in both galleries during regular weekend hours through July 11th.