(Newswire.net — October 29, 2014) Mandeville, LA — It’s on. Republican PSC candidate Forest Wright launched a television ad over the weekend calling out LPSC Chairman Eric Skrmetta for taking hundreds of thousands of dollars from regulated industries and taking actions that hurt consumers.
Wright called out Skrmetta for abusing the public’s trust after accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars from utility companies his commission is supposed to be regulating, as well as steering hundreds of thousands of ratepayer’s money to his campaign contributors.
The “PSC Trust” campaign ad is available online at http://youtu.be/kxQknXOESDM. Details on the issues and controversies referred to in the ad are included below.
Wright’s ad declares, “Corruption at the P.S.C. Eric Skrmetta, in the pocket of the big utility companies, taking hundreds of thousands of dollars in return for doing them favors. Big profits for the utilities, higher energy bills for you. Eric Skrmetta can’t be trusted.”
The 30-second campaign spot began airing this morning, Friday, Oct. 17, throughout District 1 of the Public Service Commission, where energy expert Forest Wright is challenging Skrmetta.
The ad continues saying, “We can trust Forest Wright. An energy expert. New ideas to save money on our energy bills. And Forest Wright won’t accept money from the big utility companies.”
The ad is designed to spotlight a number of incidents where Skrmetta pushed measures through the commission that directly benefited utility companies, law firms, and other private interests ahead of the public interest —and then was promptly rewarded with high-dollar campaign contributions from these organizations, their employees, and their lobbyists, sometimes even on the same day.
“Eric Skrmetta is corrupting the work of the Louisiana Public Service Commission,” Wright said. “Skrmetta has demonstrated a joyful willingness to get in bed with the utilities and communications companies he’s supposed to be regulating. The chairman has demonstrated outright enthusiasm for soaking up every dollar they have to offer in exchange for his blind support.”
Details on the issues and controversies referred to in the ad are included below.
Taking Money from Donors with Business Before the Commission:
- According to the New Orleans Times-Picayune (11/14/13), Skrmetta has received “more than $311,000… from regulated utilities and their affiliated interests” and “more than three-quarters of [his] campaign cash from regulated industries, their employees, as well as the attorneys, lobbyists and consultants contracted to work on behalf of either the utilities or the commission itself.”
- The New Orleans Times-Picayune reported that an email from a Baton Rouge lobbyist made clear that Skrmetta was demanding that “the solar industry ‘privately and publicly support his re-election’ in exchange for” lifting net metering caps.
- Skrmetta received $30,000 from a City Tele Coin fundraiser, the company’s owner, and the owner’s wife, then attempted to cut a deal behind closed doors to allow the company to pay “pennies on the dollar” for wrongdoing against the state. (New Orleans Times-Picayune, 11/14/13; The Advocate, 3/13/14; Louisiana Weekly, 6/9/14)
- “AT&T Louisiana President Bill Oliver hosted a fundraiser at his downtown St. Charles Avenue penthouse to help retire Skrmetta’s campaign debt, charging $1,000 per head or $5,000 per corporate contributor.” (New Orleans CityBusiness, 2/9/09)
- Entergy “was the largest single donor to the PSC and also appeared before them more frequently than any other single entity,” contributing $41,200 to Skrmetta alone, according to the New Orleans Times-Picayune (11/14/13)
Taking Money from Companies Seeking Government Contracts:
- Skrmetta received $17,000 from the law firm Stone Pigman and individuals connected to the law firm on the same day he voted to increase one of the firm’s government contracts by $220,000 (7/9/14).
- Skrmetta received $10,800 from Stone Pigman and connected individuals ten days after pushing for an additional $850,000 in government contracts for the law firm (1/30/13).
- Skrmetta received $7,900 from Entergy and connected individuals two days after pushing to approve the company’s rate recovery from Hurricane Isaac (6/18/14).
- Skrmetta received $2,500 from Henderson Ridge and connected individuals two days after moving to increase the company’s fees by $48,000 and budget by $200,000 (6/18/14).
- Skrmetta received $1,250 from Cleco Power and connected individuals two days after pushing to renegotiate the company’s government contract (6/18/14).
- Skrmetta received $800 from CenterPoint Energy and connected individuals two days after pushing for a settlement between the state government and the company (6/18/14).
Opposing Ethics and Finance Rule Changes that Might Stop His “Gravy Train”:
- Voted against a ban on receiving free meals from companies with business before the commission. (Ban passed over his objection 1/14/09.)
- Voted against a ban on commissioners holding fundraisers for themselves or other politicians within three days of a PSC meeting. The ban was proposed specifically in response to a fundraiser for Skrmetta. (Ban passed over his objection 1/14/09.)
- “Skrmetta said there’s nothing wrong with the way PSC campaigns are financed, although he said companies have ‘absolutely’ tried to exchange contributions for votes.” (New Orleans Times-Picayune, 11/14/13)
Forest Wright has built a career as a policy expert and small business owner. Known as a champion for emerging industry and a fierce protector of consumer rights, Forest has worked on the front lines to bring more options and lower costs to Louisiana’s working families and businesses.
Among his many career successes, Forest Wright has launched workforce development training and incentive programs that reward customers for saving energy to reduce their monthly utility bills and promote economic growth. Wright holds both a bachelor’s and master’s degree from Tulane University, where he met his wife Julia.
For more information, please visit forestwright.com and follow Forest on Facebook at facebook.com/ForestWrightForLPSC.