Albany WG&L discusses changes with MEAG - WALB.com, Albany News, Weather, Sports

Albany WG&L discusses changes with MEAG

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Albany - Albany Water, Gas, and Light leaders hope changes in the way its electric cooperative operates will bring millions of dollars back into the City's hands.

Albany is one of 49 Georgia cities in the Municipal Electric Association of Georgia, or MEAG. The cooperative allows Albany to buy electricity at a lower price.

The City invested about $60-million in MEAG trust funds so if the government deregulated the industry, the city could still deliver electricity at a competitive price. Deregulation isn't in the near future. Now, MEAG is considering changing the rules so cities can pull out some of the money in the trust. The Mayor says that money could help out taxpayers.

"We can tell our taxpayers that help is on the way," said Mayor Dr. Willie Adams. "Maybe we won't have any increase in our millage, maybe our taxes will be stable or even go down. There are a lot of things that we can plan for if we know the dollars that might be available to us."

If MEAG changes its access rules, it would be at least 2009 before cities could start taking money out of the fund.

posted at kathryn.murchison@walb.com