Page 11 - the NOISE APril 2013

They can’t help. Apparently discrimination and lawbreaking is only worth bothering about when done by the private sector.
I tried the Arizona governor’s office. They replied they have no jurisdiction over any other elected officials and suggested I contact the USDOJ even though I made it clear the USDOJ was useless. The Governor’s office even suggested I “continue ... direct communication with the Commissioners.” Great idea! They always listen to me!
I also presented the ACC’s lawlessness to all state legislators, the Residential Utility Consumer Office, and 47 newspapers and TV stations in the APS service area.
Just like when I caught APS lying, nobody cares except for a few alternative media outlets. So it looks like the ACC gets to lie and break the law with impunity.
All CoSt / no benefit
A cost/benefit analysis of “smart” meters has never been undertaken by the ACC. I sent the ACC a thorough cost/benefit analysis compiled by the Connecticut Attorney General. The analysis — which the ACC also chose not to post to their “smart” meter docket — was based on thousands of real people using thousands of real “smart” meters. It showed “smart” meters to be a total financial failure incurring millions of dollars in “stranded costs” and placing an unnecessary burden on ratepayers.
As the Connecticut Attorney General summarized, “the costs associated with the full deployment of AMI [“smart”] meters are huge and cannot be justified by energy savings achieved.”
In Illinois, that state’s Attorney General came to the same conclusion saying the utilities “have failed to prove there’s an urgent need for this excessive spending.”
ACC “workShoP” SCAm
The ACC held two “workshop meetings” on“smart”meters. Somecommissionersdid not attend or left early. The meetings were not “hearings.” At hearings people are under oath. At “workshops” they are not. So lies were told without repercussions.
Hearings — with parties under oath — should have been held before the first“smart” meter was ever installed. Health, privacy, property, security and financial issues should have been thoroughly examined before proceeding.
Seeing into Your houSe viA “SmArt” meterS
In light of the foregoing, the ACC appears complicit in a scheme to deceive and defraud ratepayers. I also contend the ACC appears complicit in depriving Arizonans of their 4th Amendment rights in what amounts to probably the most massive invasion of privacy in the history of the United States.
“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated....”
~ 4th Amendment, US Constitution
A detailed report from the Congressional research Service entitled “Smart Meter Data: Privacy and Cybersecurity” found “smart” meters to be capable of determining exactly what appliances ratepayers are using and when they are using them.
APS denies their meters have this capability. Technically they are right. The new meters cannot determine appliance usage. But software used to analyze the data broadcast from “smart” meters can!
The CRS report explains: “By examining smart meter data, it is possible to identify which appliances a consumer is using and at what times of the day, because each type of appliance generates a unique electric load ‘signature.’” Think about the implications.
The CRS has. Smart meters may be able to reveal occupants’ “daily schedules (including times when they are at or away from home or asleep), whether their homes are equipped with alarm systems, whether they own expensive electronic equipment ... and whether they use certain types of medical equipment.”
Couple this with the fact that the information is broadcast to the world over a wireless network. Add in this from Microsoft: “There is no way to guarantee complete security on a wireless network.” The result is the end of your privacy.
The CRS details how government agencies will be able to utilize your personal information against you. The report also lists other possible scenarios, none of them good, all of them because your 4th Amendment rights have been violated. The report states that “data that reveals which appliances a person is using could permit health insurance companies to determine whether a household uses certain medical devices, and appliance manufacturers to establish whether a warranty has been violated. Marketers could use it to make targeted advertisements. Criminals could use it to time a burglary and figure out which appliances they would like to steal. If a consumer owned a plug-in electric vehicle, data about where the vehicle has been charged could permit someone to identify a person’s location and travel history.”
ACC – CorruPt or inComPetent?
All this and more has been brought to the ACC’s and many other politicians’ and state agencies’ attention for two years. Their lack of response has made me wonder if they are corrupt or just incompetent.
Our system of regulatory democracy is completely broken at the ACC, and “working through the proper channels” seems impossible when the channels are blocked by those who have the incentive and the means to block them.
whAt You CAn do
Contact the ACC (azcc.gov) and your local and state reps. Tell them in no uncertain terms that you do not want a “smart” meter. Demand hearings. Ask for an independent investigation. Ask for a safety recall. Demand they protect your privacy!
APS plans to ask the ACC permission to charge people added fees if they do not want a “smart” meter. Payment to avoid harm is called extortion. Tell the ACC extortion is a crime. No “opt-out” fees!
Call APS and demand “smart” meter removal if you already have one. If you still have the old meter, tell APS you do not consent to a “smart” meter. Tell APS they do not have easement for their microwave radio networking and surveillance equipment.
Tell everyone you know about “smart” meters. Itmaybetheonlywaytheywillfindout.
| Warren Woodward welcomes any questions about the foregoing story. w6345789@yahoo.com
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• APRIL 2013 • 11