From Coalition for Safe Meters
Adopted July 11, 2015
League of United Latin American Citizens
RESOLUTION FOR A MORATORIUM ON THE INSTALLATION OF ‘SMART’ METERS AND NO COST OPT-OUT
WHEREAS, since its inception on February 17, 1929 in Corpus Christi, Texas, LULAC, the League of United Latin American Citizens, the largest, oldest and most successful Hispanic civil rights and service organization in the United States, has championed the cause of Hispanic Americans in education, employment, economic development and civil rights, and
WHEREAS, LULAC members throughout the nation have developed a track record of success in advancing the economic condition, educational attainment, political influence, health and civil rights of the entire population of the United States, and
WHEREAS, utilities are now engaged in subjecting customers to wireless technology by their installation of so-called ‘smart’ technology, which includes ‘smart’ grid infrastructure and radiation pulsing meters on homes and businesses across the country, and
WHEREAS, utility regulatory legislation is enacted with the provision that it not conflict with any authority of the United States, however, wireless radiation pulsing meters and the data they collect violate the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution which ensures the “right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures,” and
WHEREAS, the Federal Energy Policy Act of 2005, which proposed the use of wireless ‘smart’/radiation pulsing meters, mandates that utility companies ‘offer’ wireless meters and install them ‘upon customer request’, however, utilities are installing these meters without the consent of the property owner, and
WHEREAS, municipal governments and utilities across the country have not warned the public and their customers of inherent health, safety, and privacy problems with ‘smart’ grid technology and the wireless radiation pulsing meters, and
WHEREAS, we are concerned that monopoly utilities have approved this technology without public knowledge or debate and in many cases without a vote of local government or the citizenry, and
WHEREAS, these monopoly utilities argue that they will save money by eliminating the cost of meter readers, however, cost benefit studies have in many cases not been undertaken or proven this assertion to be false, and
WHEREAS, utilities have not warned the public of known health hazards to ‘at-risk’ populations, which include those with EMR sensitivities, individuals with pacemakers, individuals with metal in their bodies (teeth and prosthetics), and
WHEREAS, utilities have failed to warn customers that the World Health Organization has designated exposure to Radio Frequency a Class 2B (Possible) Carcinogen and that the United States Military have identified radio-frequency (RF) radiation as a health risk, and
WHEREAS, persons in densely populated areas may be at higher risk of health effects due to the proximity to the meters, a population which includes not only the poor and minorities but the elderly that have downsized to live in apartment complexes and condos, and
WHEREAS, some utilities classify apartments and condos as ‘non-residential’, and have a policy that forces ‘smart’/RF meters on them, Clearly this is an arbitrary decision on their part that is dismissive of property rights and which puts the apartment or condo owner and their tenants in harm’s way when meters are clustered near an apartment or condo unit, and
WHEREAS, ‘smart’/RF meters are proven vulnerable to hacking, intrusion, and the ‘smart’ grid to be more susceptible to terrorist attack and disruption;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the League of United Latin American Citizens supports the Federal Energy Policy Act of 2005 that time-based meters be provided upon customer request only, and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that our organization supports the right of the property owner to have an ANALOG meter (and not be forced to have a non-communicating RF/’smart’/time based meter installed), and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that our organization supports the right of the property owner to disallow a tenant from having an RF/’smart’/time-based meter installed, and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that our organization supports the right of the property owner (or tenant with permission of the property owner) to have a previously installed RF/’smart’/time-based meter replaced with an ANALOG meter, at no cost, by the utility, if it is determined that the utility did not have proper permission to install the meter, and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that our organization opposes all fees associated with refusing RF/‘smart’/ time-based meters, especially a monthly charge that will be disproportionately harmful to the poor, and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we support a Moratorium on the installation of RF/‘smart’ meters until such time that we determine that all safety, health, and privacy concerns have been resolved to the satisfaction of this organization.
Voted and approved at the 2015 National LULAC Convention – July 11, 2015.
Roger C. Rocha, Jr.
LULAC National President
Smart Meter Harm 