A third strike against Hood's allegations regarding Entergy

Yesterday the Mississippi Public Service Commission adopted and certified to the Legislature an independent audit it had commissioned of Entergy Mississippi. This is the third indepdent audit of Entergy in two years and once again - surely to the chagrin of Attorney General Jim Hood's contingency fee contract lawyers - it says Entergy is clean and proper. Entergy issued this release:

Once again, an independent auditing expert, hired by the Mississippi Public Service Commission, has found no improper charges by Entergy Mississippi, Inc. to customers. This is the third MPSC-commissioned, independent audit in two years to reach this conclusion.

McFadden Consulting Group Inc. filed the audit report with the MPSC on Tuesday, March 30, which certified it shortly after. The audit report, which examined Entergy Mississippi’s operations, found that the processes and procedures utilized by Entergy in purchasing power help ensure that energy is procured for customers at the lowest practical costs.

McFadden’s finding is consistent with another Commission-ordered audit report of Entergy Mississippi’s fuel procurement policies and fuel adjustment clause. In that operations report, Vantage Consulting found that Entergy purchases energy, fuel, transmission rights and access, and other related products at the lowest reasonable cost.

The third Commission-ordered audit, by Horne LLP, an accounting and auditing firm, was a financial audit of the company’s energy cost recovery mechanism. Horne’s audit report confirms that Entergy Mississippi has properly accounted for fuel and purchased energy costs.

McFadden’s report points out that Entergy is one of the largest and most complex utilities in the United States, and that the review and analysis was thorough.

Three independent audits; three audits announcing Entergy is proper; three strikes against Attorney General Jim Hood's allegations.