This is What Democracy Looks Like
The people of Lexington will finally have a chance to vote on who should control their water service: distant shareholders, or a local public company.
On May 23, Kentucky American Water, a subsidiary of German conglomerate RWE, decided to drop its lawsuit that sought to put the brakes on local democracy. Kentucky American had previously tried to argue that referendums were illegal in the state of Kentucky.
While Lexingtonians are happy to finally exercise their democratic rights on this important issue, some are skeptical of Kentucky American’s reasons for dropping the suit. After learning of the dropped lawsuit, grassroots group Bluegrass FLOW (For Local Ownership of Water), issued a statement that began: “RWE has apparently decided it is cheaper to buy television than to pay lawyers.”
If last year’s near-election was any indication, RWE is in for a run for its money. Before the Kentucky Supreme Court cancelled the referendum vote in 2005, 99 absentee ballots had already trickled in. The results? 77 for local ownership of water, 22 against.
Learn more about Lexington’s grassroots campaign at www.bluegrassflow.org.
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