Power Politics.

Gov. Gray Davis may not be responsible for the state s energy mess, but once again he has shown an uncanny ability to make a bad situation worse.

Davis reckless threats to seize excess power from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and other municipal utilities to ensure adequate electrical supplies statewide are unwarranted and threaten to punish those utilities and the consumers they serve for wisely opting out of the deregulation fiasco.

In a move clearly intended to boost his sagging approval ratings and gain leverage in ongoing negotiations between the DWP and the state Department of Water Resources over long-term power contracts, Davis declared that our local utility is reaping unconscionable profits at the expense of other Californians. Whether intentional or not, Davis made the comment in an interview with a San Francisco newspaper and thus inflamed Northern California passions against Los Angeles.

Davis threats to seize excess power are being taken as a call to arms by the DWP and Mayor-elect James Hahn, and rightly so. Their. first priority is to ensure uninterrupted service to their customers and manage the utility in a way that guarantees stable prices now and in the future. Calling the threatened seizures a violation of state and federal laws, Hahn has vowed to take the governor to court if any such attempt is made.

That s not to suggest the DWP should follow the practice of several out-of-state energy companies which, in the absence of federal intervention, have taken advantage of pricing fluctuations during the state s power crisis and profited handsomely as a result. But Davis, despite his inflammatory comments, has yet to present any proof that the DWP has engaged in such predatory behavior.

The conflict between Davis and the DWP centers on the price charged by the DWP for excess power during peak periods. State officials say the DWP has charged $360 per megawatt hour, compared with $310 per megawatt hour by the out-of state energy companies.

The governor wants the DWP to cap its rates during power emergencies at 15 percent above the cost of production. But the utility says that is precisely what it has been doing. The difference between its rates and the power companies rates stems from the fact that the utility relies on less efficient plants to produce excess power plants that are fueled by expensive natural gas.

Hahn and DWP officials insist they want the utility to be a good neighbor to other Californians during the energy crisis, but they are understandably reluctant to jeopardize the interests of local businesses and individuals to subsidize other electricity consumers.

Ultimately, it will be up to the weather, not the DWP, to determine if Californians are subjected to blackouts and brownouts this summer. In the meantime, Davis has turned his attention to using utilities like the DWP as scapegoats to win political points and deflect public criticism.

Threatening to seize the power and production facilities of the DWP and other utilities sets a dangerous precedent and is simply bad public policy.