Mississippi Power Company in Court Over Kemper Facility
The Mississippi Power Company, finds itself in court over whether it can legally charge consumers for the Kemper County Coal Plant now under construction in East Mississippi.
In a suit filed before the state Supreme Court, Hattiesburg resident Thomas Blanton claims Mississippi Power’s recent rate increases act as an illegal tax, because consumers are not receiving any additional services. Blanton believes Mississippians are instead being forced to invest in a facility that may never show any return.
“This is Mississippi Power taking money, building a plant and giving us no stock, no bond, nothing.” said Blanton. “If you ask me to put up money, give me something in return. Now, everybody says you’re getting electricity, and the answer to that is ‘No, we have to pay for the electricity, and the fuel, and the operations maintenance and all that on top of this.’ Now, clearly that’s unconstitutional.”
MPB
