iei
The Battalion
Vol. 71 No. 158
12 Pages
Tuesday, June 6, 1978
College Station, Texas
News Dept. 845-2611
Business Dept. 845-2611
season
BA i
vvever.l
ra to!
roperty tax vote
seads primaries
United Press International
eatl 'tali the public opinion polls are right, the
first | J<ingi>redicted revolt of the American tax-
oftlieBer starts today in California.
B)espite some major contests in the
their!t|iglit states’ holding primaries, an issue —
as ^ California's tax-slashing Proposition 13 —
comm stolen the show from the candidates.
BrouiMhe hottest candidate battles were in
lingtaMjfomia, Montana, Mississippi and New
°i n ts Jersey, with contests also in New Mexico,
six'Ohio, Iowa and South Dakota in the
alftw biggest day of primaries so far in the 1978
- "it elec tion year.
s, theiKProposition 13, a proposed amendment
TOfHjthe California constitution, would re
end Met property taxes to no more than 1
medtilercent of 1975 values. Overall, that
Hild be a 60 percent cut; for California
lemaiiBdities it would be a loss of $7 billion of
ne skllO billion in property tax revenues,
when Mf Proposition 13 passes in the nation s
nt 31 most populous state with the majority
01 " leing predicted by usually reliable polls
he echo may be heard in legislatures
eld tin Tcross the nation, including Congress,
n scoietBn California, where the tax-cutting in-
jurap siiative was expected to promote a 68 per-
becampit voter turnout. Gov. Edmund G.
gulati Irown Jr. has little opposition in thfe
blocWBmocratie primary; but the Republicans
gameufeve a good battle.
Attorney General Evelle Younger was
■n Bui
iftd as the GOP leader over former Los
tngeles Police Chief Ed Davis, state As-
emblyman Kenneth Maddy and San
Diego Mayor Pete Wilson.
Jnseoli*
^mlontana has an incumbent senator be-
" , 1 pved to be in trouble. Democrat Paul
^ ea, t Btfield, appointed last year after Sen.
ns scom, Metcalf died, was seen as running be-
19intt|j nc | R e p Max Baucus in a four-candidate
n 18. L C1 .
.^lississippi has an all-out scramble for
'X(|he seat of retiring Sen. James Eastland.
Bthe Democratic primary are Gov. Clill
Finch, former Gov. Bill Waller and five
others. Rep. Thad Cochran and state Sen.
Charles Pickering are contesting for the
GOP nomination.
In New Jersey, veteran Republican Sen.
Clifford Case was expected to beat his
primary challenger, Jeffrey Bell, but the
Democrats have a hot battle involving
former professional basketball star Bill
Bradley, former state Treasurer Richard
Leone and former state Sen. Alex Menza.
In the other primary states:
Ohio — Republican Gov. James Rhodes
expects to beat state Rep. Charles Kurfess
in the GOP primary for renomination; Lt.
Gov. Richard Celeste leads state Klan
leader Dale Reusch for the Democratic
gubernatorial nomination. Former Rep.
Wayne Hays is seeking nomination to run
for the state legislature.
New Mexico — In the Democratic pri
mary for governor, former Gov. Bruce
King leads Lt. Gov. Robert Ferguson; on
the GOP side, former state Sen. Joe
Skeen, the 1974 candidate, leads state
Rep. Bob Grant.
South Dakota — Three Democrats, led
by Lt. Gov. Harvey Wollman, and three
Republicans, paced by Attorney General
William Janklow, seek nomination to suc
ceed Democratic Gov. Robert Kneip. In
the contest for the Senate seat of retiring
Democratic Sen. James Abourezk, Rep.
Larry Pressler leads a two-man GOP field;
former Rapid City Mayor Don Barnett and
Ken Stofferman are the Democratic con
tenders.
Iowa — Former Lt. Gov. Roger Jepsen
and former state Commerce Commis
sioner Maurice Van Nostrand are battling
for the GOP nomination to oppose Demo
cratic Sen; Dick Clark; State Rep. Jerome
Fitzgerald and former state Democratic
Chairman Tom Whitney seek their party
nomination to oppose GOP Gov. Robert
Ray.
Battalion photo by Lee Bov Leschper Jr.
‘A little move,’ she says. . .
More than a few more-or-less-willing parents have found them in
this “Aggie Daddy’s” shoes over the last few days doing double duty
as a beast of burden for sons and daughters moving back into Texas
A&M dorms after a few weeks of vacation at home.
as firm officials bemoan rate rules,
Jtrge interstate price deregulation
adoiiwp By GARY WELCH
■I Battalion City Editor
art the®
ce ^digpOfficials of Lone Star Gas Co., which
run oi» ivers natural gas to Bryan and College
l^nkinsMtion as well as much of east and central
j butjflxas, are trying to explain some of the
C are t r com pany’s problems in gathering and
j m jut marketing the gas.
, li s t JlOne main problem is that Texas is a
Borne rule” state, so each municipality
regulates its own utility rates. However,
the company’s transmission system, which
ries gas from the wellhead to different
cities, is regulated by the Texas Railroad
R>mmission. When the gas reaches the
jiilfeity gate” it is turned over to the city’s
* ^ffgulatory body, usually the city council.
1 iJ“ In ^ le ^ ast session of the legislature,
I Lone Star Gas Co. supported legislation
I ^ phich would have eliminated municipal
CiJgulation of natural gas utilities,” said W.
“ij, JHouglas Weisbruch, vice president, gen-
" ‘ |ral counsel and secretary for Lone Star,
ur efforts in that regard were unsuc-
Issfiil.”
I Cons
from!
f(>
tees
I
He said one of the main problems in
i|Healing with so many cities (577 in Texas
f 111 1 land southern Oklahoma) is regulatory lag.
,nt . 1 ' f Bs natural gas costs rise, as they have in
" 1 the past four years, most cities are not will
ing to adopt substantial rate increases. If
1 the gas company’s costs remain constant to
^ er Mse while the selling price remains the
' e l’ ' same, the company stands to lose money.
“In the inflationary environment in
which we live,” Weisbruch said, “if the
utility cannot obtain adequate rate relief
within a reasonable period of time, not
only does the utility experience further
losses if a rate deficiency exists, but the
data upon which the rate case is presented
grows cold and out of date.
Also, with a dual regulation system,
there are often substantial rate differences
from city to city. Lone Star now delivers
residential natural gas in Dallas for $2.24
per thousand cubic feet (mef), and $3.23
per mfc in the small town of Lipan.
“The piecemeal approach to ratemaking
which we are presently experiencing is re
sulting in more inequity in rates between
the various cities and towns,” Weisbruch
said. “We find differences in the rate of
return authorized by the Railroad Com
mission in our appeals from city to city,
from examiner to examiner, and from util
ity to utility.”
Lone Star has also been greatly affected
by the sharp increase in the price of
natural gas in the last six years. Until 1972,
natural gas was consistently priced at
about 20 cents per mfc. Now the price is
fluctuating around $1.60.
Harry Merritt, vice president of the gas
supply, engineering and marketing divi
sion of Lone Star, gave several reasons for
the increase.
About seven years ago when Texas
began to feel the national natural gas
shortage, he said, the decreased supply
and increased demand forced the price up.
As owners of natural gas resources began
to realize they had an advantage they
began to demand more in their contracts.
“For example, the percentage of gas
which the purchaser is required to take
from the source increased from the 60 to
70 percent range to 90 percent and in
some cases 100 percent, Merritt said.
Also, many sellers demanded that buyers
connect each gas well in a short time, driv
ing production costs up.
“But the most dramatic and long-term
contribution to this increased cost comes
from the inclusion of price retardation
provisions in gas purchase contracts,”
Merritt said. “Until about 10 years ago
Lone Star would allow an increased cost of
gas of 1 cent per mfc every five years. As
competition increased, buyers had to
grant increases of 3 to 4 cents per year to
stay in the buyers market.
Merritt said the only way to bring gas
prices into equilibrium would be to de
regulate interstate gas prices. The current
federal price ceiling for natural gas sold
across state lines is $1.47 per mfc.
As long as Texas must sell to other parts
of the country cheaper than they could
produce it themselves, he said, tbey will
have no incentive to develop reserves of
their own.
A study by the Congressional Budget
Office showed that if natural gas were
completely decontrollled, the price would
rise to about $4 per mfc before dropping
back to $2.80 by 1985. Industry lobbyists
argue that only by decontrolling natural
gas and allowing the price to rise can the
nation be sure of an adequate supply.
If conventional sources of natural gas
prove too costly in the future, there are
other sources that are being developed.
Dr. Hunt Sutherland, vice president of
the development and research division at
Lone State, said natural gas is found in coal
seams and in shale. Over 4,000 gas wells
have been drilled since Devonian shale in
West Virginia.
Gas can also be shipped to the United
States as a liquid. Developing natural gas
fields in Iran, Algeria and Columbia may
provide much of our future natural gas.
Methane can also be synthesized from
anything that contains carbon and hy
drogen, Sutherland said. Methods are
being developed that will enable gas com
panies to convert certain material to
methane while still in the ground.
Sutherland said that one of the largest
potential sources is the gas trapped in
sandy sediments along the gulf coast. Al
though the gas is not easy to produce be
cause it is so far underground, some ex
perts have said that at present usage lev
els, there is a 2,000-year supply along the
Texas coast alone.
Battalion photo by Lee Roy Leschper Jr.
122
96
bONLI I
FREE
782 >
Can you spot the new Aggie?
This assorted group of incoming freshmen and their parents listens life” segment of Monday’s freshman orientation session. For re-
with a mixture of rapt attention and polite boredom to a “student lated story, see page 3.
r
L
Inside Tuesday:
• Summary of facilities on cam
pus available for student use —
p. 4.
• A look at the Diamond Darl
ings — p. 9.
• NBA championship down to
the wire — p. 11.
J
Canada fears ban
may slow
United Press International
OTTAWA — Canada decided not to re
taliate against a U.S. ban on Canadians
and welcomed American sports fishermen
on its side of the Great Lakes today in a
move to bolster its sagging tourist indus
try.
“Canadian waters are, in fact, open to
recreational and sport fishermen at the
moment and for the foreseeable future,’
Fisheries Minister Romeo LeBlanc said
Monday.
It was feared Canada’s billion-dollar-a-
year sports fishing industry would suffer il'
the government carried out a reciprocal
ban on the Great Lakes.
Canada and the United States closed
their 200-mile jurisdictional waters to each
other’s commercial fishing boats off the At
lantic and Pacific Coasts at noon Sunday —-
but then added a 24-hour grace period —
in a dispute over an interim fishing treaty.
The U.S. government escalated the dis
pute by barring Canadian sports fishing on
its side of the Great Lakes.
“We have made it clear from the begin
ning the suspension of the agreement was
in relation to commercial activities in the
oceans, LeBlanc said.
External Affairs Minister Don Jamieson
said Canada was attempting to "clarify
the U.S. action in the Great Lakes and
said he was hopeful the “whole question
will be resolved within a day or two."
tourism
“I have the impression, and it is purely
that at the moment, that no one on either
side wishes to seriously obstruct the
tourist business, least of all we in Canada, ”
Jamieson told the House of Commons.
Sport fishermen, however, were caught
in the middle, and were not happy about
it.
“All of us would like to know what’s at
the bottom of all of this,” said Pam Wills, a
clerk at Lafayette Tackle Co. in Detroit.
“Were all just mad in general, and nobody
understands why it’s happening.
“You hear a lot of snorting and groaning
going on,” said Francis Weakland, owner
of a fishing supply shop in Marysville
across the St. Clair River from Ontario.
“Americans pay $10.75 for a Canadian
fishing license, and now they can’t fish
from American boats over there. Those
guys are going to be madder than hell.
In Cleveland, Capt. Richard Abrahams
said the Coast Guard was only maintaining
regular patrols on the Great Lakes. “We re
not going out for them (Canadian fisher
men). But if we find a Canadian vessel fish
ing in our waters, we can detain them,
give them a citation and possibly seize
them.”
Jamieson said, “As I understand it,
neither does it apply to someone going
across the border with his fishing pole
wanting to do some fishing.
Prairie View head
may sue mayor
United Press International
PRAIRIE VIEW — The president
of Prairie View A&M says he will proba
bly file suit against the mayor of Prairie
View who ordered his arrest.
Mayor Eristis Sams ordered the
educator arrested Wednesday in a dispute
about the location of sewage lines on the
university campus. Dr. Alvin I. Thomas
posted a $200 cash bond at city hall and
was released.
Sams admitted Thursday on a Houston
television station (KTRK) that he disre
garded the advice of his lawyers when he
ordered the president of Prairie View
A&M University arrested after Thomas
had workers block a six-inch sewer line
which had been laid across the campus.
Thomas, also interviewed by the sta
tion, termed Sams “inexperienced,” and
said he likely will file a civil rights violation
suit against the mayor.
"Sams is guilty of a flagrant abuse of
power, and my attorneys say we have
strong grounds to file suit,” he said.
The school has operated a sewage
treatment plant for its own use since the
early 1970s, and in 1972 arranged to
handle sewage from the city.
City planners have added more homes
to the sewage line, and over school objec
tions buried a new line across the campus
to the treatment plant.
Thomas maintains the line should be re
located so it does not pass under a road.
He ordered the sewage line capped this
week until the location is approved by the
university Board of Regents, and a rate
agreement is reached.
The Board of Regents will meet Friday
to consider rates and plans for the sewage
line.
Gramm, Poerner
win party runoffs
Dr. Phil Gramm captured the Demo
cratic nomination for the 6th Congres
sional District Saturday when he defeated
Ron Godbey by over 2,500 votes.
Gramm, a Texas A&M University eco
nomics professor, collected 23,772 votes to
Godbey’s 21,132. His wide margin in
Brazos County, which he took with 6,665
votes to Godbey’s 2,994 was a key in
Gramm’s victory.
He will face Republican Wes Mowery in
the November general election.
In the race to fill the unexpired Railroad
Commissioner’s term, John Poerner be
came the Democratic nominee when he
won the race by a landslide. Poerner, who
was appointed to the commission last
January to fill a vacated post, received
.544,715 votes to Jerry Sadler’s 233,148.
Poerner will face Republican James
Lacy in the general election.
In Brazos County, Dick Holmgreen de
feated former Bryan mayor Lloyd Joyce by
almost a three-to-one margin in the Dem
ocratic race for county judge.
Holmgreen collected 7,039 votes to
Joyce’s 2,556, and won 30 of the county’s
31 precincts. He will face Republican John
Raney for the position in November.
In the other Brazos County runoff, in
cumbent Democrat Walter Wilcox de
feated George Dunn for Precinct 2 county
commissioner by taking 56 percent of the
vote. Wilcox collected a total of 1,829
votes to Dunn’s 1,441.
There is no Republican candidate for
the position, so Wilcox is virtually assured
of winning unopposed in November.
Publishers decry decision
ST. LOUIS —- The president of the
American Newspaper Publishers Associa
tion says the Supreme Court decision al
lowing police to search newspaper offices
threatens constitutional rights.
“The decision of last Wednesday sub
jecting newspaper offices to ransacking
puts a sledgehammer in the hands of those
who would batter the American people’s
First Amendment rights,” ANPA Presi
dent Allen H. Neuharth said Monday.
“It authorizes harassment and intimida
tion of the public’s right to know, and it
literally and legally picks the lock that pro
tects the exercise of a free press and, in
effect, of free speech. "
Neuharth, president and chief executive
of Gannett Co. Inc. pf Rochester, N.Y.,
addressed the opening session of the 50th
annual ANPA Research Institute Produc
tion Management Conference.
In the case Neuharth referred to,
Zurcher vs. Stanford Daily, the Supreme
Court ruled 5-3 that police can obtain war
rants to search newsrooms and other
premises when they believe evidence re
lating to a crime exists.
Neuharth said the publishers associa
tion will “vigorously encourage the Jus
tice Department’s stand that it will con
tinue to seek information from the press
by using subpoenas.
Neuharth also called on newspapers and
press associations to encourge state and
local governments to adopt and reaffirm
the “subpoena-notsearch” policy.
“In short, we shall ask state and local
officials to help save the press and the pub
lic from the folly of this Supreme Court
decision,” he added.
Summer session
late registration
Wednesday
Registration for the first ses
sion of summer school at Texas
A&M University ends today at 2
p. m.
Students who do no com
plete their registration and re
turn their class assignment
cards to the Registrar s station
in the Memorial Student Cen
ter 212 and 224 by 2 p.m. todav
will be considered late regis
trants.
These students may^attend
late registration in G. Rollie
White Coliseum Wednesday,
beginning at 8 a.m. Students
registering late must pay an
additional $4 fee.
Friday is the last day for
enrolling in the first summer
session.