ELECTRIC CHANGE-OVER

New Zealand Times, Volume LIII, Issue 12389, 8 March 1926, Page 7

ELECTRIC CHANGE-OVER

AND THE APPEAL BOARD CMC LEAGUE TO THE MAYOR .THE CONSUMERS’ ASSESSOR In a letter which has been addressed to the Mayor (Mr C, J. B. Norwood) the Civic league discusses the constitution of the Electrical Change-Over Appeal Board. . After acknowledging the receipt of certain communications, the letter proceeds:— “The question of your council s general treatment of the .consumers and your reference to a particular case are matters quite beside the issues which our committee’ placed before you. We submitted that the Appeal Board, as provided for under the regulations, is in general impractical for the following reasons: “(1) There is no assurance that the services of a senior magistrate would be at all times available without delay. “(2) There is no information as to payment for servioes of the board members. “(3) If the individual consumer la to engage and pay for the servioes of his own expert assessor it may cost

ibim more to secure a hearing of his appeal than it would to pay the full account, thus the right of appeal is rendered useless to the individual.

“As an alternative our committee placed before you the suggestion that yonr council should agree to have one person possessed of expert knowledge appointed to determine all appeals, and, for preference, that such arbitrator should be one of the Government’s officers. We certainly understood you to agree with this proposal, and that you undertook to find put if the services of such an expert would be available. We regret to find no reference to this in your letter. “THERE IS NO BOARD" “We cannot understand Ynur Worship writing us that the board ‘was automatically set up’ and referring to it ‘as constituted’ when, as a matter of there is no board until - all members are appointed, and such has not taken place up till now. As some considerable time has elapsed since the regulations were gazetted, we think Yonr Worship might have called a publie meeting of the citizens who are affected as consumers, and arrived at some understanding with them as to .whether some more practical method of hearing appeals could be established. For yonr council to rest on the fact that its own assessor is appointed and take no responsibility with reference to the appointment of an assessor for the citizens who are consumers appears to us not quite just. Your council, as a corporate body, is one of the parties in this business arrangement, hut it is also elected to represent those irho are the other party. CONSUMERS’ ASSESSOR “It is for such reason we respect"fully urge that a duty rests upon your council to see that the consumers’ assessor is appointed; or that some more method' is adopted of ensur- , jng to the individual citizen a right jof appeal. You inform us that your Icommittee has no recommendation to. make relative to amending the law :until certain phases of the question are we presume regulations—ijwith our committee, and you suggest 'a joint meeting to* exchange confidences. In reply to this I have to inform you that my committee will be | pleased, to meet your conmmittee at | such time and place as you may ap\point. The business being one which the general body of. citizens, .we take it that any exchange of confidences will only be preliminary to action which will as early as possible establish for the citizens a fully practical systen) of appeal, which, they can approve and nuke use of. If you Will kindly inform me when your commitjtee is to meet, I shall be pleased to [notify the members of our committee.”