250 Years of Governing Ourselves
This month marks 250 years since a group of people decided they would rather govern themselves than be ruled by a distant authority that didn’t know them and didn’t answer to them. The principle they landed on was simple: The people being governed should choose who governs them, and those leaders should be accountable to the people who put them there.
This principle describes, in a small and local way, how your utility works.
Northern Wasco County PUD is owned by the people it serves—not by shareholders in another state, not by investors looking for a return. By you. The board that sets our direction isn’t appointed by anyone. You elect them, the same way you elect a county commissioner. They’re your neighbors, and they answer to you. It’s the same principle the country was founded on, applied to your power lines.
The decisions to establish rates, which lines to rebuild next, or how to spend a dollar are made here, by people who live here and pay the same bills you do. Every dollar stays in Wasco County, working for the community it came from.
Public power wasn’t a given. Our community chose it more than 80 years ago because the people here wanted the decisions about their power made by them, not by someone far away. That instinct is older than our PUD. This month, it turns 250.
So, this Fourth of July, between the fireworks, a backyard barbecue and maybe a World Cup match on the screen, I hope you’ll take a little pride in something most people never think about: The power running to your home is yours. You own it. You govern it. And we’re proud to keep it running for you this holiday and every day.
Happy Independence Day from all of us at Northern Wasco County PUD.
Roger Kline
General Manager and CEO