New Legal Documents Expose Attempt by Regulators and Trial  Attorneys to Bail out SONGS at Public’s Expense

The proposed settlement delivers a 417-fold return on investment for Southern California Edison, which is paying a local law firm $5.4 million dollars in exchange for allowing Edison to keep billions of dollars that have been wrongfully charged to ratepayers.

“What they are doing is like the police telling you that they are forcing the thief who robbed you to return 15% of what was stolen,” says Charles Langley, Executive Director of Public Watchdogs. “It is a $5.4 million sell-out, and if it is allowed to go through it will set a precedent for utilities to buy the cooperation and endorsement of consumer attorneys,” says Langley.

The legal protest, filed with the California Public Utilities Commission yesterday, asserts that approval of the proposed bailout of Southern California Edison’s failed nuclear power plant represents the completion of a documented criminal conspiracy to defraud California ratepayers.

It also asserts that the payment of  $5.4 million to attorneys for the putative activist group Citizens Oversight represents an illicit compensation scheme that sets a precedent for large utilities with unlimited legal resources to purchase the silence of groups opposed to the documented unlawful activity that has occurred at the California Public Utilities Commission.

Get the Public Watchdogs Protest HERE

Get CPUC’s Proposal to Bail Out SONGS HERE