Attorney General Demands Hearing to Protect Consumers from Excessive Rates Charged by Western Kentucky Gas

FRANKFORT, KY (September 13, 2005) - Attorney General Greg Stumbo today filed a demand for a hearing at the Public Service Commission concerning the excessive rates charged by Atmos Energy Corporation, also known as Western Kentucky Gas.

Stumbo’s demand is based on a complaint filed by his Office on February 1, 2005. The complaint states that at that time Western Kentucky Gas was already over-earning and should be required to lower its rates by as much as $7.4 million per year. The company provides natural gas to 38 counties in Western Kentucky and serves more than 180,000 customers.

“I am frustrated with the lack of action taken by the Public Service Commission,” Stumbo said. “The Commission received our complaint nearly seven months ago. If the Commission is truly concerned about the higher prices this winter, then it needs to hold a hearing and reduce rates. The law requires that the Commission must rule within 10 months on a request for a rate increase. A similar timeline should be in place when a company needs to reduce its rates.”

The company does not make any money on the cost of the natural gas itself. It makes its money on the delivery of the gas. Those delivery charges are millions of dollars higher than they should be, according to Stumbo. “It’s bad enough that the cost for natural gas is already at or near record highs, even before winter hits, but when you throw on excessive delivery costs a lot of our citizens could find themselves left out in the cold.”