AG Jim Hood to the Rescue

Attorney General Jim Hood said Entergy is playing a shell game with energy and fuel costs to drive up its profits at the expense of ratepayers - and he's taking them to court to prove it. Way to go, Mr Attorney General! Finally, someone is standing up for us poor souls trying to pay our bills.

Some of you may recall that back in July, I posted an open letter to the Public Service Commission about Entergy's outrageous fuel charges. As I predicted, the PSC did not bother to respond to my letter. (These elected officials need to learn that they work for the voters - and they'd better start answering their letters.) It's true that about a week later, the PSC did tell Entergy to lower its fuel cost adjustment, but it was too little too late. Looked to me like a deal worked out between the PSC and Entergy to make them look good.

But apparently Attorney General Jim Hood, unlike the PSC members, is not in the pocket of the utilities, and he is really looking out for the consumers.

When Entergy raised their rates by 28%, AG Hood asked very nicely if they would please give his office the documents about its pricing policies and its buying and selling practices. But Entergy said no - that he had no right to the information. Excuse me, Entergy, but you are a PUBLIC utility, and he is the State's Attorney General. Of course, he has the right to the information, you idiots!

So did the AG back down like all the other wimps that run this state? Hell no! He took them to court and sued for the documents. So why in the world would Entergy refuse to give the AG the documents, when I'm sure their well paid attorneys told them they had to do? It's pretty obvious, isn't it? They're hiding something. They're hiding that their profits are out of sight, while the poor Mississippi taxpayer is struggling to make ends meet.

Just in case you think the AG is off on some wild goose chase trying to get publicity, just look at what happened in Louisiana where an Entergy subsidiary was charged with deceptive pricing schemes and overcharging customers. According to Consumer Affairs:

"In Louisiana in recent years, Entergy has been ordered to repay more than $100 million to ratepayers who had been overcharged by the company in two separate cases going back to 2000. In addition, Louisiana's efforts to recover the money has resulted in additional savings of more than $150 million for customers."

One of the many things I like about our Attorney General is the way he just tells it like it is.

"For decades, Entergy Mississippi has operated under the premise of 'just trust us, we know what's best for you.' But secrecy is never best when it comes to the pocketbooks of hardworking Mississippians who struggle each month to keep their lights on. . . But I have news for Entergy. The law in this matter is on the side of ratepayers and this office is charged with protecting their interests. We are going to shine some light on these practices and allow our citizens to look inside the company that is supposed to be serving them."

I don't know about you, but I think lower electric bills would be mighty nice - not to mention a few hundred million dollars.