Residents continue to complain about rising electricity bills; group plans to conduct community forum Thursday in Lufkin

LUFKIN — Organizers of a Zavalla town meeting held in March over high electricity bills have joined together to host a follow-up session on the subject. But this time they are bringing the heated discussion to Lufkin's Pitser Garrison Civic Center from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday with promises of more organization and bigger voices.

"This is a more central location for other people to come and join in," said organizer Tammy Stanley Howell who owns a house in Zavalla. "It's a follow-up to the first meeting to see at this point what has been done and accomplished, so we know what we should do next."

Photo illustration by Joel Andrews (enlarge photo)

On March 15, Zavalla hosted a town meeting for residents looking for answers as to why their electricity bills had spiked two to three times the amount usually owed for February. Average temperatures for February were not usually low compared to the previous year and rates had not dramatically increased. The most recent change locals could point to were recently installed digital meters.

Lufkin attorney Mike Love, who has agreed to facilitate Thursday's meeting, said his practice Love and Wills law office is looking into the concerns of several citizens.

"There is a feeling among a lot of citizens that TXU knows what the problem is and is hiding the ball," he said.

Since TXU Delivery installed its meters in mid-December, residents throughout Angelina and Nacogdoches counties have reported receiving bills two to three times higher than the average amount for the time of year.

"Our meter was changed about four months ago to a digital meter. Since then we have received light bills more than double their usual cost," said Maritza Reyes of Lufkin in an e-mail message March 16.

One Lufkin couple took their complaint a step further and filed it with the Public Utility Commission of Texas. As of late March, their electricity provider had sent them a light "cut off" notice.

"I suppose my issue is that as consumers we simply do not have any rights when it comes to big business. And despite our efforts to prove otherwise, we are guilty until proven innocent in the eyes of many large businesses that realize we have to have their services despite the consequences," said Charlie Throckmorton in an e-mail message to The Lufkin Daily News.

Company representatives on March 15 assured residents the meters are accurate, saying the meter is not to blame.

"The meter has fallen victim because it is the most tangible thing to blame," said Chris Schein, a TXU representative. "Consumers need to look at rates. They have gone up."

Co-organizer Betty Jordan of Lufkin said her opinions have changed since the Zavalla meeting. The problem is not with the meters, she said, but with the distribution lines residents use to receive power.

"We want (TXU Delivery) to check the distribution lines," Jordan said.

Lufkin resident Al Martin, who has a background in mechanical engineering, said he conducted an independent study of his home usage after getting fed up with the responses he received from PUC and Reliant Energy. The study was done to determine where the problem is, he said.

He said he installed a laboratory calibrated meter to monitor his usage and compare it with the number of kilowatt hours he was billed for that month.

"It is not anywhere near," he said. "What I was billed is three times what I was getting."

Martin said he believes the problem lies in the distribution lines.

"The lines are overloaded," he said.

TXU Delivery representative David Collier said the company would be happy to check into any problems. He said he has not been made aware of any concerns over power line distribution.

"We do constant maintainance on our facilities to ensure safe and reliable services to our customers," he said, adding that the company does timely checks on power lines to ensure power quality. Collier confirmed he will attend the meeting Thursday.

Love said he hopes there will also be TXU representatives at the meeting who can answer the more "technical questions."

Susan Sowards, district director for Jim McReynolds' office, is also expected to attend, Howell said.

The Public Utility Commission of Texas has been invited, Jordan said.

"We want PUC to hear this and hold TXU Delivery accountable."

Jordan and Howell said the issues this time around will focus on the delivery side, which is where they say the problem lies. No retails providers have been invited for that reason, Jordan added.

Howell asked residents who plan to attend to bring a personal letter with them that outlines their concerns. A petition asking TXU to conduct a proper investigation into the problem will be available at the meeting.

A dollar donation will be asked at the door to help pay for the cost of renting the civic center for that evening, Howell said.