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Local voices matter. Help us amplify them by contributing to your local newsroom. Dear Editor, I wish to add one more consideration in support of a "yes" vote on March 4, which will allow the city to evaluate whether a municipal electric utility would be a good option for Decorah. While Alliant Energy has deluged us with ads on various media (which we are paying for), the one thing Alliant doesn't seem to be very good at is providing reliable information. Take, for example, Alliant's requests for base rate increases from the Iowa Utilities Commission (IUC), which has consistently had to rein them in by approving smaller, more reasonable increases. In a 2018 study commissioned by Alliant, Concentric Energy Advisors reported that from 2002-2017 the IUC approved on average only 65.3% of the total amount Alliant's requests (see Figure 14: Selected Alliant Electric Rate Cases). This pattern continued from 2017-2023, with Alliant filing for a combined 44.8% increase (6.4% yearly average) and the IUC approving 27.5% (4.1% yearly average). Clearly, Alliant has been packing these initial requests with many things they can live without, hoping to look like they are being reasonable by "compromising" when in fact they're probably getting what they wanted in the first place. Might their numbers game-playing be the same strategy they've employed on Decorah, promising lower rate increases that turn out not to be true, and now estimating that the city of Decorah would need to spend a whopping $85.6 million to acquire and startup Alliant's existing local systems? That is $34.6 million more than the $51 million estimated in the 2018 Concentric study–an increase of 68%! Notably, Concentric added a disclaimer to the latest study that it "did not independently validate such information and does not provide an opinion on its accuracy"(my emphasis; Decorah Leader Feb. 14]. If the March 4 referendum is approved, the IUC could potentially compel Alliant to provide accurate data and statistics so the city could conduct its own MEU feasibility study. And if the city submits such a request to the IUC, Alliant would be granted access to the city's information. This seems like a no-brainer to me. Vote "yes" so we can get the real information we need to make the best choice for our energy future. Martin Klammer Decorah, Iowa Stay ahead of the curve! Subscribe to free newsletters for exclusive insights, local trends and analysis delivered straight to your inbox.

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Letter to the Editor - One More Consideration