The Public Service Commission approves Entergy’s request to charge its customers an additional $8 a month for the next 15 years to pay for the damage done to the power grid from four hurricanes and a winter storm. PSC member Foster Campbell believes Entergy should also pay part of the repair bill.
“It’s greed that’s driving your company and it should not be greed and it’s our job to reduce the greed and pass it along to the people,” said Campbell.
Campbell was the lone no vote out of the five-member commission. He says it’s troubling that utility customers will see higher bills, while the Entergy CEO enjoys raises.
“How are you going to explain to my million people in north Louisiana, not all of them you represent, that your salary went from 10-million to 14-million during these troubled times, how are you going to explain that to them,” said Campbell.
Entergy says two-point-two million dollars in damages was done to its system following the hurricanes in 2020 and the winter storm in February 2021. The utility company says Hurricane Ida caused other one-million dollars. PSC member Eric Skrmetta voted for the surcharge.
“It’s a tough thing to do to pay the butcher’s bill, and it’s a tough thing for us to do as commissioners to understand that there’s a value to the money spent,” said Skrmetta.
Skrmetta says Entergy faced a difficult task each time there was extensive damage and they rose to the challenge. including getting power restored in days for some parts of southeast Louisiana after Hurricane Ida.
“I appreciate the fact that you went out and brought in tens of thousands of workers from 40 something states and brought them in to fix everything for everybody,” said Skrmetta.
Entergy says customers could see the surcharges as soon as May.
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