New Rates Proposed.

The Budget committee met Monday night in Council chambers. At the meeting the Carthage Water & Electric Plant (CW&EP) board reviewed their budget with the committee and made a recommendation to raise electricity prices fifteen percent, water prices five percent and wastewater prices five percent.

The raises were proposed for a variety of reasons. The main reason according to CW&EP General Manager Bob Williams was because over the past three years CW&EP has experienced an unexpected fifteen point one percent increase in the cost of purchase power. During this same time operating revenue has increased by only point one percent.The Board is recommending the fifteen percent rate increase beginning July 1, 2003. According to Williams a medium size home using 900 KWH of electricity should expect an increase of approximately $8.00.

The other main reason for the increase was due to projects needing to be done this year. A main transformer at the substation needs to be replaced. According to Williams recent test reports on the transformer showed gas build up which indicated arcing inside the transformer which will lead to failure in probably a short period of time.

"When it gets hot and everybody cranks up their air conditioner and you hear a big boom, you’ll know what it was," said Williams.

According to Williams, even with the price increase, when compared to surrounding areas, prices in Carthage remains below average.

Got another one a those calls yesterday.

"Hello, this is Craig with the Fraternal Order of Police here in Carthage," the voice said.

"I didn’t catch the name," I replied.

"My name is Craig and I’m calling about....", he continued.

"What was the last name," I asked.

"Showers," he said.

"Then you don’t work here in town," I said, havin’ been knowin’ several of the local officers for some time.

"No," he said, "and I’m not an officer. It’s illegal for police officers to solicit money."

Knowin’ there are several local police activities I would rather donate to, I declined to commit any money.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

by

Carthage Printing

HERE’S A TIP

\By JoAnn Derson

• Mildew-stained shower curtains can be washed in the washing machine. Use detergent and 1 cup of bleach. Throw in some old towels for scrubbing action.

• "To keep my kitchen sponge and scrubbies fresh, I just throw them in the dishwasher every few days." — Stella in Ohio

• If you are sending a greeting card to someone in the hospital, try putting the person’s home address as the return address. If the patient is discharged before the card arrives, it will be "forwarded" to his or her house.

• "Whenever I come across a sticky lid on a jar — one that is hard to open — I just pop it in the freezer for about three minutes. This seems to unstick glass jars in a jiffy." — Jim in Denver

• "I used to have a problem with my shoelaces coming untied when I ran. Then, my cousin Gary showed me this nifty trick: Just take a spray bottle or a damp cotton ball and moisten the laces before tying. It works great!" — Bill in West Palm Beach, Fla.

• "I love to make pies — all kinds of pies. Here’s a trick my mother taught me: To make a smooth cut on a soft pie, use a knife that’s been run through butter." — Martha P. in Georgia

• If you eat something hot and need to cool down your mouth right away, don’t reach for water; it can aggravate inflamed taste buds. Instead, grab a hard candy or sprinkle your tongue with sugar.