21.   State officials have for months sought contracts with the DWP and other municipal utilities to ensure a steady supply of low-cost power this summer.

22.   That could erode the financial margins of municipal utilities and make it more difficult to meet debt service obligations as customers seek cheaper power, analysts said.

23.   The bill removes obstacles for utilities to build their own power plants in Iowa and allows municipal utilities to jointly build plants.

24.   The commission also decided that power sales by municipal utilities should be included in considering refunds.

25.   The commission lacks regulatory authority over municipal utilities, federal hydroelectric plants and rural electricity cooperatives.

26.   The Missouri Joint Municipal Electric Utility, a group of municipal utilities, has concerns about rates the merged company would charge for transmitting electricity.

27.   The payments would be made to county assessors who, in turn, would repay the state and municipal utilities.

28.   The rest of the grid is controlled by municipal utilities and the federal government.

29.   Their well-publicized woes are causing confusion for the municipal utilities, which are scrambling to reassure customers and bondholders that they will not be adversely affected by deregulation.

30.   To be sure, municipal utilities with generation costs will have a difficult time competing with a product that is invisible and interchangeable -- except for price.