Legalectric

This morning, House Minority Leader Matt Entenza came down to the Mainstreet Coffee Cafe in Lakeville to chat with folks from Senate District 36. I’ve been helping Carolyn Sampson get her Senate campaign organized for this next election cycle, and I need to get to know the territory. Paul Hardt, DFL Senate District 36 Chair, organized this meeting with the caucus. Senate District 36 includes Lakeville, Farmington, Empire, Vermillion, Marshan, Ravenna, Eureka, Castle Rock, Hampton, New Trier, Douglas, Miesville, Welch, Greenvale, Waterford, Sciota, Randolph, Stanton, Dennison, Warsaw and the one precinct of Northfield that is located in Dakota County. It’s been a long time since my office was in Farmington, next to the bakery!

There was a good crowd this morning, a diverse crowd with diverse interests ranging from the usual overt abortion and gun issues to the more subtle issues of message in a conservative community, and it’s all connected! As the House Minority Leader, Matt’s committed to getting out to all of the districts. His thoughts today focused on the importance of investing in community, noting that the DFL controlled politically for 30 years because it represented people’s interests. People trusted that the DFL would take care of our schools, health care. Now that people have had some time under Republican leadership, they understand what that means to them, and we have an opportunity to speak to everyone’s concerns. People have a good sense of what the party is about, but we have to be better at talking about it. The Republican rule has demonstrated that their policies are not the Minnesota way, and that as a whole, Minnesotan’s recognize that when we all do better, we all do better. The DFL closed the gap in the House last year because the voters were asking “What does this mean to me?” Entenza stressed the importance of taking time to introduce candidates to the voters, and that it can take a second run for a candidate to have that necessary name recognition with voters. He noted that the District 36 candidates got a late start, in July, and that running is not a six month commitment, that it takes time and work to chip away and build that base.

Matt Entenza and Paul Hardt, District 36 Chair

There’s a good group of enthusiastic DFLers in Lakeville. If you want to join in the Senate District 36 efforts, contact Paul Hardt at dfldistrict36@ispwest.com or call him at (651)463-3798. District 36 is looking for DFLers to staff the Dakota County Fair booth on Friday, August 12, and Carolyn Sampson is coordinating that effort — sign up today! (Doug the barber on the main drag in Farmington tells me they’ll have the road on the edge of the fairgrounds passable by then, stop by and let him vent about it!)

The Iowa Utilities Board granted the Schous’ appeal! And even better, we got a wide variety of issues through the hoop, and so we can do a very broad attack of their project and their many procedural screw-ups. It’s a big uphill battle, but we’ve made it partway up the hill. Has Cedar Falls Utilities met its Waterloo?

Here’s there decision: Download file

And here’re the points they’re going to take up on appeal:

1. Failure to provide notice of the petition as required by Iowa Code § 478.5 and 199 IAC 11.5(2).

The Schous raise the issue of failure of CFU to provide the required notice because it was not published before the hearing and, when published, the notice was only published one day each week rather than everyday for a two-week period. This is an issue that the Board will consider on appeal.

2. The findings of the ALJ in the proposed order are not supported by competent and substantial evidence and the ALJ erred in not admitting certain evidence offered by the Schous.

The Schous raised several issues concerning the failure of the ALJ to admit certain evidence and that certain of the ALJ’s findings were not supported by the record. The Board will consider these issues under the general heading of whether there is a preponderance of evidence to support the decision of the ALJ.

3. Application of the appropriate standard for admission of expert testimony and the qualifications of CFU’s witnesses.

The Schous contend that CFU witness Dr. Siles was not qualified to testify as an expert on the effect of EMF on humans. The Schous did not raise the same issue with CFU’s other witnesses, however, the Board will consider the qualifications of the three CFU witnesses and the opinions they gave concerning power line emissions and EMF effects on humans.

4. Exclusion of evidence concerning landing strip.

The Schous contend that CFU failed to address the location of a helicopter landing strip within ½ mile of the proposed power line. The Board will consider this issue on appeal.

5. Alternate routes not properly considered.

The Schous contend the ALJ did not give proper consideration to the alternative routes, especially the one offered by Consumer Advocate. The Board will consider this issue on appeal.

6. Failure to meet the standard of “necessary for public use.”

The Schous contend that CFU did not meet the requirement that the proposed line is necessary to serve the public use. The Board will consider this issue on appeal.

7. Failure to properly weigh evidence of injury to Mrs. Schou.

The Schous contend the ALJ did not properly weigh the effect of the proposed line on the health of Mrs. Schou. The Board will consider this issue on appeal.

Just in from Maria across the pond:

View from the Mountain Hostel

Amsterdam Zoo View image

Arc de Triumph View image

Inside the Arc View image

Dam Square, Amsterdam View image

Gimmelwald View image

Paris from the Seine River View image

Paris Metro Station View image

PIC, Red Light District View image

Riding the Rails View image

The Eiffel Tower View image

Welcome to Paris View image

Wind Power in France

Maria says “more to follow!”

Frantic butt covering by Rice County about I-35 — too funny! Except that Rice County’s actions have an impact on people’s lives… this area is home for many people, and to put people through this is abusive policy. Does this look like the place for 11.5 million square feet of commercial development?

So what’s up? Rice County has sent out a notice that on August 11, 2005, at 7:30 p.m., there will be a hearing for comments regarding proposed changes in the Comprehensive Plan. After the fact, the County is trying to comply with basic land use principles, that you may only make zoning changes that are compatible with the Comprehensive Plan — the I-35 changes aren’t, so now they’re trying to change the Plan. Here’s part of what they’re wanting to change, the full notice should be published in the paper. Here’s the notice that a landowner received. View image

Item C: Add wording to the Comprehensive Plan to reflect the Zoning to
Highway Commercial for the area South of Highway 19 between County Road 46 and just South of County Road 1to I-35 and for the area North and South of County Road 1 between Baseline Road and I-35.

* Add to page 50 a new paragraph following the second paragraph. “On page 18 of this document there was information as to how the tax base of Rice County was becoming more dependent on
residential development. Because Rice County desires to become a self -sustaining community it is essential that employment opportunities and non -residential development be a focus. An area of approximately 1100 acres is designated for commercial industrial development and will need to be properly planned to optimize development potential and benefit to Rice County. Creation of a Land Use Master Plan, an Alternative Urban Area Review (AUAR) process will be necessary to
guide the development. The AUAR will need to address more specifically the implementation of the Infrastructure Plan including Rice County Policy on improvements.

* Change Map 3 Rice County Comprehensive Plan to include nonresidential land use designation for this area.

So not only is this a tacit admission by the County that its Comprehensive Plan does not allow for this type of land use, not only is it an admission that the AUAR does indeed require analysis of a “no-build” alternative because the Comprehensive Plan in effect at the time the AUAR was passed does not incorporate this type of development, it’s more fundamental — Rice County, in its rush to ram through this project, passed zoning changes that are not allowed under the Comprehensive Plan! Well, DUH, we’ve been telling them all this for how long?

Funny this should occur right when the County’s outhouse attorneys (not inhouse) on the MERA suit are digging through the County files working on our Discovery… $50 says they’re finding a few things that are “problematic.” The sad thing is that citizens have to go to this extent to get their government, which is supposed to represent their interests, to act legally.

Back to Wisconsin’s Ed Garvey:

This is the Ed Garvey who ran in 1998 for Governor of Wisconsin, who over the years took around $500,000 in Wisconsin’s Intervenor Compensation to represent SOUL on the Arrowhead Transmission Line (and put a first year attorney on the case), and recently in his blog seemed upset that WI’s Democratic Gov. Doyle signed the legislation that gave utilities power to take county land for the Arrowhead Transmission Line… Huh? Can it be that Garvey, the 1998 Democratic gubernatorial candidate, doesn’t know what the Democratic gubernatorial candidates before and after him have done? Does he not know of Chuch Chvala’s impending trial? Does he not know of Doyle’s acceptance of campaign money from utility PACs and employees?

Funny how it works — I got this article from a “little birdie” in Wisconsin moments ago…

From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinal (click on headline for full story):

Utilities gave Doyle cash as projects OK’d

Political action committees for and employees of Wisconsin Energy Corp., Wisconsin Public Service Corp. and American Transmission Co. gave Doyle $50,660 just before or after their projects received key approvals, according to figures collected by the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, a non-partisan group pushing for campaign finance reform.

And it’s an ongoing thing:

Between 2002 and June 30, 2004, people affiliated with the state’s gas and electric utilities gave Doyle $133,323, a 17-fold increase over the $7,911 such individuals gave Doyle from 1995 to 2001 when he was attorney general, the report found.

Here’s an itemization of Doyle’s “Energy” contributors.

Why is Garvey having so much trouble accepting that Chvala and Doyle are utility toadies? Is it because the straight line between the 1994 and 2002 races runs right through Garvey’s 1998 race?