In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, the 90 percent of Long Islanders were left without power. Most homes were blacked for a week, and many were dark for as long as two weeks. Now, a commission backed by Governor Andrew Cuomo is taking the Long Island Power Authority to task.
The Moreland Commission on Utility Storm Preparation and Response is recommending that LIPA, a state agency created in 1985 to oversee the island’s power, be dissolved and replaced with a private corporation that’s overseen by the state, much the way Con Ed runs now. The panel also recommended more power be given to the Public Service Commission–the agency that oversees private power companies–including the ability to take away a utility’s license to do business.
Cuomo hasn’t officially supported the idea, but did address the commission with no small amount of contempt for LIPA. “I have a natural inclination against relationships that are impossible,” he said. “This is, right now, an impossible relationship.”
(Photo: saebaryo/Flickr)
