surrebuttal...

First you have testimony, then you have rebuttal, then you have surrebuttal, then sur-surrebuttal. Just in case you're as confused as I am, I'll tell you that when it comes to matters of the law, it often gets worse before better.

This morning I got up early to craft my surrebuttal testimony for the case involving the power company AEP-SWEPCO in its application to cut an extra high voltage powerline through my local community.

It seems that Arkansas State Law is carefully crafted and as is usually the case, words have been selected for their specific meanings.

According to Arkansas Code § 23-18-511

“An applicant for a certificate shall file with the Arkansas Public Service Commission a verified application in such form as the commission may prescribe and containing the following information: (6) An analysis of the projected economic or financial impact on the applicant and the local community where the facility is to be located as a result of the construction and the operation of the proposed facility;” [emphasis mine]

There's the rub. Neither AEP-SWEPCO in their application, nor the APSC in their review of it, have considered the economic impact of the project on the local communities through which the powerline will pass. No mitigation is offered to compensate communities for disastrous effects. Thankfully, getting up early has other rewards. I get to make boxes. Those in the photo above are ready for sanding. In a way, craftsmanship is like law. You go at it. Then you go at it again. By the time you get good at it, you're way past rebuttal, surrebuttal and sur-surrebuttal. Craftsmanship is better than law in that the case is never closed. You get to keep on making beautiful and useful things.

Make, fix and create...