By Frank Parlato Jr.

Some things don’t add up.
The New York Power Authority (NYPA) has had control of the hydro- electric power generated from the Niagara River since 1957. 
Yet the people in the region do not reap any benefit from it.
Almost every kilowatt – is directed elsewhere - to New York City, and seven other states, while people here pay nearly the highest rates in the USA.
In 2004, for example, NYPA made more than one- half billion in profits from the sale of Niagara hydro-power, yet the region’s residents paid among the highest rates in NY, and, hence, among the highest in the nation. According to Electric Power Monthly – only two states pay more for electricity than New York (New Hampshire and Hawaii). In fact, 13 states pay less than half what New Yorkers pay.
Now, after 50 years, NYPA’s license for the exclusive rights to the Niagara River’s hydro- power is about to expire, and NYPA wants 50 years more.

A CENTURY WITHOUT ONE OF OUR GREATEST REGIONAL ASSETS?

Most local leaders are ready to give NYPA 50 more years of exclusive management of our power. Some people think that’s insane.
Let’s use an analogy.
Suppose a region grew marvelous apples – so red and delicious they were famous for it, and could get rich from the sale of them and healthy from the eating – but the people and their children – for 50 years- never tasted, or profited from them (unless, of course, their kids moved out of the area- which they did). Then the people and their inept leaders renewed the license of the Apple Authority to have dominion over their apples, and, for 50 more years they imported far more expensive, but inferior apples, or went without Apples, though the orchards were all around them.
And the people remained dead broke.
You’d call these people insane wouldn’t you?

NYPA has had control of our apples for 50 years, and now are seeking another 50 years - until 2057 -a whole century- it is proposed- without tasting our own apples, without getting our hydro- power for our own use.

That’s insane.

WHAT IS NYPA, ANYWAY?

The New York State Legislature created “The Power Authority of the State of New York” in 1931 to provide (don’t laugh) “low-cost electricity to the people of New York State.”
NYPA, a not for profit corporation, whose board of directors are appointed by Albany, is the largest state-owned public power organization in the US.  It operates 17 generating facilities, the most lucrative being the Niagara Power Plant.
NYPA sells its power to private utilities for resale, to government, and to neighboring states.
In a crazy twist of fate, however, NYPA sells none of its Niagara generated power to Niagara area residents.
Being a non-profit, “public benefit” corporation, NYPA is not allowed to disburse profits to stockholders. Therefore, NYPA’s enormous profits must be either utilized in high salaries, and the creation of more Albany directed (patronage) positions, and/or studies given to political donors, or, in the alternative, given back to the people in the form of lower electric rates.
Guess which they chose.

The people here, however, are apathetic about their power. Nobody is even talking about whether or not to renew NYPA’s license. The only question asked-- by so-called leaders-- is – “what’s in it for me?”
 “How many crumbs can we get from NYPA?”
Nobody talks about lower rates for the people.
They talk about, “can we get two million or ten million for our pet projects?”
Compared to what the actual financial value of Niagara power is, two million is two cents and ten million is ten cents.
Even to the dull of comprehension – such as many of those who reside here – I shall make my point crystal clear: The people should take their hydro- power back.

WHO ACTUALLY APPROVES RE-LICENSING

Approval or non- approval of another 50 year license for NYPA comes from either The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) or by  Congress.
Without public consensus, the commission will have to defer to Congress. In other words, if people complain, the re- license will not be granted without an act of Congress.
NYPA wants to avoid this.  Since if enough people complained, Congress might give the power back to the region.

HOW WAS OUR HYDRO- POWER DIVERTED FROM US?

It was in Niagara Falls that hydro- electric energy was first demonstrated to the world and the promise made that the common people could have inexpensive (if not free) electricity. By diverting the rushing power of descending water, Niagara Falls came to be known as “the Power City”. And, for years, the region profited.
Following a collapse of a Niagara Mohawk power plant from a rockslide in 1957, Albany and Washington worked together to divert local control of hydro -power.
Sage voices warned against it, but Albany prevailed, promising everything to everyone.
We were told we needed NYPA, headed by the power-mad Robert Moses, to manage our power, and make sure the people, not a few, greedy, corporate barons or political patronage hogs – got the benefit.
It turned out to be precisely the opposite.
After 50 years, the people who have the greatest hydro -power potential in the world, neither get the use of that power nor have inexpensive electric bills.

BUT WHY DO OUR LEADERS WANT TO RENEW NYPA’S LICENSE?

Because they are going to get an apple a day.
NYPA, hoping to bypass congressional approval by getting local "consensus" to support its proposed new licensing, is attempting to silence/buy off everyone who they label as “Stakeholders,” a euphemism for “potential squeaky wheels.”
 “Stakeholders” must be satisfied they are getting fairly compensated for the use of our regional asset and sign off on the re-licensing agreement.
Niagara County has already settled.  Each of seven “stakeholders” there will get a tiny stipend – roughly equivalent to a single apple out of an orchard per year.
Niagara Falls, Niagara County, the towns of Niagara and Lewiston, and the Niagara –Wheatfield, Lewiston -Porter, and Niagara Falls School Districts settled for $233 million over 50 years, including a "signing bonus" of $8 million, and $5 million annually through the end of the license agreement. Niagara's communities will also receive an allocation of low-cost power from the authority. In computing the deal, the full retail value of the electricity offered at low cost is used to inflate the value of the settlement to more than one billion over 50 years.
It seems fabulous at first glance. A billion dollars!!!
The five million which the seven Niagara county entities would split, however, isn’t factored for inflation. In a highly inflationary period – such as we saw the last 50 years, that five million could wind up being equivalent to the buying power of $500,000 or less.
Consider what $500,000 was 50 years ago.

A PARALLEL WITH ALBANY’S CONTROL OF FALLS' TOURISM

As most locals know, Albany controls tourism in Niagara Falls. By their aggressively pro- Albany management of the Niagara Falls State Park – the most visited state park in the USA, Albany, which controls all major concessions and parking, diverts both tourists and profits away from the city and its people - and into the park- then sends the profits to Albany. It is tantamount to a Tourism Authority, and has helped bankrupt a city where 17 million tourists visit annually. 
Have you ever heard of a city getting 17 million paying visitors – 300 to every resident – every year- and is broke?
But there is no satiating Albany- a city which exists solely for politics. They took our two greatest assets—hydro-power and tourisms and diverted it to themselves.

SUDDENLY IN THE NEWS

For almost 50 years we never heard much about NYPA. Now they want license renewal and daily we are hearing about the generosity of NYPA in newspaper stories. They are joining green commissions, bringing in terrorist experts, and offering “huge” monetary incentives to municipalities, (if they pledge to vote for 50 year renewal.)
Uninformed people read the stories and say- “gee whiz! Lewiston–Porter is going to get a million dollars. Boy- we just won the lottery. Thank you Philip Morris, er- I mean, thank you NYPA.”
But we OWN the lottery.
The Niagara River is in our midst.

WHAT THE NYPA –OFFERED- PITTANCE IS IN PROPORTION TO THEIR EARNINGS

NYPA makes more than 500 million per year from the Niagara River, even after patronage, and studies done by politically connected consultants are subtracted.
To put it in perspective, say you made $500 per week -- thanks to the essential help of some people, and, in return, you gave them 50 cents a week.
To make the picture clearer, while you dutifully gave your 50 cents every week to those without whom your license could not be renewed-- you spent on political hacks and consultants -from your expense account- a thousand a week.
This is no exaggeration.
NYPA’s budget, for example, for re-licensing is $52.1 million- and much of it is for consultants who perform seemingly endless studies.
The NYPA minutes are sometimes laughable but they help illustrate the point:
As reported in the Niagara Falls reporter:
"The number of studies identified in the 2002 meetings was used to estimate 2003 study budgets," it is explained in the minutes from a NYPA board meeting held on Sept. 23, 2003.
"However, the level of studies increased and additional studies were added in 2003 which led to unanticipated costs in 2003. Although very successful, (re-licensing effort) has taken longer than anticipated, which further compresses the time allocated to conduct studies and gather information. This time compression, coupled with the additional studies and/or expanded level of study effort, has increased the re-licensing costs beyond those anticipated in 2001 at the time of the initial contract award."
NYPA increased the amount for “studies” from $15.9 million to $24.9 million, and re-licensing director Keith Silliman told NYPA that they might need $13 million more (for studies, mainly) to complete the renewal process.
$52.1 million, by the way, is more than half what NYPA offered Buffalo and Erie County over 50 years.
Congressmen Brian Higgins called NYPA – “Enron like –in their excesses.”
But he misses the point. Higgins is fighting NYPA, trying to get for Buffalo, not two million a year, but ten million- a figure which represents four thousandths of a percent of NYPA’s annual revenue.
But, if the license isn’t renewed, and the Niagara region controlled its own Hydro- Power, then, instead of $10 million, Higgins could have $100 million a year for Buffalo.

But nobody’s talking about that.

Officials in most municipalities have signed on because, after literally being starved out by Albany, with our parks and our power –a pittance seems like a fortune.

Niagara Falls residents

SELLING OUR SOULS FOR A DIME.

Niagara Falls, for instance, is going to get $500,000 from NYPA as a signing bonus this November. Like beggars starving for a morsel, Niagara Falls needs $500,000 desperately.  The devil said, “We have this little clause here-- you have to support our 50 years- to get your money.  After all, you haven’t had hydro- power – the soul of the region -these last 50 years. You won’t miss it the next 50 years. But 500k, that’s something real.”

PATRONAGE ? AND GREASING SQUEAKY WHEELS—NOT REALLY…

Louis Ciminelli was appointed by Governor Pataki in 1995 to the NYPA board, and was its chairman from 2002 - 2005. ART VOICE reported that “Federal and State election campaign databases” show Ciminelli donated $123,935 to Republicans. Pataki was the largest beneficiary of Ciminelli’s donations. In fact, Ciminelli, in 2002, held a Pataki fundraiser which raised $400,000 for the governor.
By the way, to understand how these things work, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) recently approved a new 50-year license for NYPA to continue operating the St. Lawrence Power Project.
To get the renewal, NYPA got ten “stakeholder” towns and school districts in St. Lawrence County to agree to divide up two million per year. Other squeaky wheel pittances went to parks, and millions went to studies to placate environmental groups and enrich favored consultants.
NYPA gave money to study nesting platforms for osprey and loons (not the human kind) and grassland nesting for sandpipers. The locals don’t get cheaper power –as do seven other states from their dam- but they get studies about eel migration.
NYPA gives $200,000 to host communities, and their unsophisticated politicians are paraded out for quotes:
“I want to congratulate … Governor Pataki (for) getting the job done right,” said Lisbon Town Supervisor Roger Watters in a press release.
“I am extremely pleased the Power Authority has received its license,” said state Sen. Jim Wright. “This will benefit the North Country economy.”
NYPA’s new license “provides long-term stability to the North Country’s economic engine,” said Massena Village Mayor Ken MacDonnell.
In Niagara, NYPA is moving fast to take care of squeaky wheel environmentalists. The Greenway Commission — charged with creating a study for an interconnected system of parks along the Niagara — hired Joanne Willmott, who is, ironically, NYPA’s Regional Manager of Community Relations to be chairman.

NYPA still needs Buffalo, Erie County and the Tuscarora Nation- who during the original licensing of the Niagara Project fought hard to prevent the takeover of their land. It also needs an apathetic people to remain quiet or act pleased with the pittances already offered.

IF ROBERT MOSES COULD SWIM

When the original takeover by NYPA was affected, and the Niagara Power Plant completed, NYPA Chairman, Robert Moses said, “We have learned an ancient truth—that men of good will working together are unbeatable.”

And speaking of truths let me tell you an Aesop fable:
An apple orchard was beside a cow pasture, and the rains came and washed both the apples and the cow terds into the river. As they were going downstream together, the terds were heard to exclaim, “my, how we apples can swim.”

The moral is “don’t let the Albany terds steal our apples once again.”