TVA Privatisation Bill Hotly Debated

Nyman D.C.

A proposal to privatise the Tennessee Valley Authority has been met with strong debate in the Senate, with opposition being led by former PPT, Senator Al. Criticism has been principally directed at the proposal to auction the Authority to the highest bidder, and also at the underlying theme of removing a public utility from public ownership.

Various comprimise proposals have been put forward, including allowing the Senate to pass judgement on whatever privatisation scheme emerges from the Secretary of the Treasury's negotiations with interested buyers. Also proposed is a scheme to only part privatise the TVA, allowing the government to maintain the dominant stake and therefore control, or to float parts of it on the stock market.

With heated words and extremely sour tones, Senators Al and Jake clashed quite directly, though Al seems to have come off the better, pointing out that the TVA had been self-financing since 1959, and that thus its effect on the defict in the long term would be effectively nil (of course, the windfall from the sale would help it short term).

There's no light at the end of this tunnel yet.