Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Annual Reports of Public Electric Utilities, 1967-1997
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Seattle City Light
- Title
- Annual Reports of Public Electric Utilities
- Dates
- 1967-1997 (inclusive)19671997
- Quantity
- 0.4 cubic foot, (1 box)
- Collection Number
- 1202-05
- Summary
- Reports filed by City Light to the U.S. Department of Energy.
- Repository
-
Seattle Municipal Archives
Seattle Municipal Archives
Office of the City Clerk
City of Seattle
PO Box 94728
98124-4728
Seattle, WA
Telephone: 2062337807
Fax: 2063869025
archives@seattle.gov - Access Restrictions
-
Records are open to the public.
- Languages
- English
- Sponsor
- Funding for processing this record series was provided through a grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission.
Historical NoteReturn to Top
City Light provides electricity and electrical and conservation services to its public and private customers. It is the largest public utility in the Pacific Northwest. Public responsibility for electrical energy dates to 1890 with creation of the Department of Lighting and Water Works. In 1902, Seattle voters passed a bond issue to develop hydroelectric power on the Cedar River under the administration of the Water Department. Electricity from this development began to serve Seattle in 1905. A City Charter amendment in 1910 created the Lighting Department. Under the leadership of Superintendent James D. Ross, the department developed the Skagit River hydroelectric project which began supplying power in 1924. Both public and private power was supplied to Seattle until 1951 when the City purchased the private electrical power supply operations, making the Lighting Department the sole supplier. The Boundary Project in northeastern Washington began operations in 1967 and supplied over half of City Light's power generation. By the early 21st century, approximately ten percent of City Light's income came from the sale of surplus energy to customers in the Northwest and Southwest with the remainder of City Light's financial support coming from customer revenue. The current name of the agency was adopted in 1978 when the Department was reorganized.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
Federal regulations require City Light to file annual reports to the United States Department of Energy. The reports include income and sales statements, utility plant valuations, bonded debt, taxes and tax equivalents, electrical generation statistics by type of utility plant (steam, hydroelectric, etc.), transmission line statistics, power purchases and sales, and power exchanges. Prior to 1982, public electrical utilities that generated annual revenues of $250,000 or more were required to file reports. After that, the requirement was based on the generation of 120,000 or more megawatt hours.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Preferred Citation
[Item and date], Annual Reports of Public Electric Utilities, Record Series 1202-05. Box [number], Folder [number]. Seattle Municipal Archives.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Electric utilities--Washington (State)--Seattle
- Electric power--Washington (State)--Seattle
Corporate Names
- Seattle City Light
Geographical Names
- Seattle (Wash.)