The top trio of Clarksdale Public Utilities employees are still on suspension with pay pending investigation, but customer concerns remain the same — their high utility bills.
Annie Houston, a Cedar Street resident, told the board in July her bill went from $142 to $230 in one month. She said her bill increased to $234 in August. She brought 10 to 20 customers with similar issues to address the board during Tuesday’s meeting.
CPU general manager Mark Johnson, chief financial officer Steve Reed and director of communications and public relations Chris Campos were not at the meeting due to their suspensions. The investigations of all three were recently extended to run through Aug. 28. Interim general manager Jim Hemphill from The Victor Group Inc. in Starkville did hear the concerns.
Sheila Profit was at the meeting in place of Reed and Curtis Boschert was filling in for board attorney David Hunt, who is on vacation.
Houston spoke to everyone at the meeting.
“We got a very high light bill. My neighbor here got a light bill, look, $2,134 and 90 something cents,” she said. “That’s too high. All those people that we’re in there, we’re complaining about those high light bills.
“What is going on down here with the Clarksdale Public Utility bill? Something is going on wrong and that’s why we come down here – to find out what’s going on. What’s going on? We want some answers.”
Houston said she believes CPU was corrupt as employees at the office are able to put any number they choose in the computer and make a bill higher.
Mary Hines from the 1000 block of Barnes Street said her bill increased from $127 to $250 in one month.
George Fields had similar issues and said he could have 500 people at the next CPU meeting if things did not change.
“I think the way the bill is set up to be paid, yes, it’s a racial issue,” he said. “You can tell it’s a racial issue when, in my neighborhood, in the brickyard, in the Riverton, in the upper brick, in the Roundyard, our bill comes out around the 17th of the month. Our bill is late around the 22nd of the month. If you’re on an income where you get your fixed income at the first of the month, the cutoff day is the 31st.”
Fields said it would be beneficial for senior citizens who are on a fixed income if everyone’s bill was due the third of the month.
CPU board president Freddie Davis told the customers everyone was treated the same and no errors were found after investigating Houston’s bill in July.
“I don’t think anyone on this board or anywhere in this city is penalizing people for any reason,” board member James Hicks said after the customers left. “I don’t do it. I don’t believe any of these guys do it. I think, in the future, we probably need to set some rules. I think one person should be a spokesman, maybe two.”
“That’s what they need is a spokesperson,” Davis said in agreement. “We don’t need 20 people to come in here and talk. We’ll be in here all evening. The spokesperson can convey everything that needs to be conveyed to us.
“I understand some of these people get government subsidy checks and want to pay at a certain time. If we can look at that and set it up, that’s fine, but you have people on this side of town and you have people on this side of town that fall into that category. They have it set up in regions so that’s the way you pay your bill.”
Hemphill said things are going well with day-to-day operations.
CPU’s Facebook page is now running.
“We’ve found a way to get on the Facebook page and we’re managing that process,” he said. “It took awhile. That was the one that bothered me the most, not being able to communicate with our customers.”
The board did approve Davis being able to sign papers regarding compliance issues such as air quality standards.
Johnson’s signature normally goes on those papers.
