Letter to the Editor: "Avoid unnecessary Alliant buy-out expenses"

(The following Letter to the Editor has been submitted by Bob Puffer of Decorah):

"I grew up in Spencer, Iowa, where a municipal utility was--it had been there since 1942. It allowed utility lines to be sheltered from storm-related power outages by being buried underground, something unheard of from most commercial utility providers to this day. It allowed Spencer Municipal Utilities (SMU) to provide fiber-based Internet to over 90 percent of its residents with speeds twice as much as Decorah and costs less than half. SMU also allowed for the abandoned Stolley's gravel pit, a horrendous eyesore where we all drank beer in high school and some fell in and nearly drowned, to be converted into a vast and beautiful park and trail system, pictures of which I have from visiting last year. It is a community builder.

I just got a robo-call from Alliant Energy advising me of their intention to install "smart meters" in Decorah.  Many others in Decorah have received these calls also. According to a govtech.com article last month less than 20 percent of communities in Iowa have smart meters. I encourage all Decorah residents to opt out of Alliant's smart meters, whose benefits to the consumer are negligible but will represent an unnecessary financial burden when Decorah chooses to implement its own municipal utility.

These are the steps I took to "opt out" of the meters:
1. Call their number, 800.255.4268
2. Say 'No' to calling about emergency.
3. Confirm your address by saying 'Yes'
4. Give last four digits of SS #
5. Say 'Associate' when asked about nature of call
6. Say 'Billing' when again asked about the nature of your call. This will get you a person who will place an order not to replace meter.

Citizens of Decorah--plan now for the future, like Spencer Iowa did 75 years ago."