Long story short:
In 1989 southwestern bell filed for a rate increase and it passed the corporation commission by a 2-1 vote.
Subsequently, one of the commissioners ( Bob Hopkins ) and a southwestern bell attorney were convicted of bribery in the case.
Now, a lawsuit has been filed to return 14 billion dollars to ratepayers on the argument that the 2-1 was invalid because the bribed vote of Hopkins was illegal so the legal vote was 1-1 and the rate increase was not approved by the CC.
AT&T, then SW Bell, argues against the lawsuit and AG Scott Pruitt sides with AT&T before the Oklahoma Supreme Court.
http://okenergytoday.com/2015/10/at...er-he-sided-with-firm-in-old-rate-case-fight/
In 1989 southwestern bell filed for a rate increase and it passed the corporation commission by a 2-1 vote.
Subsequently, one of the commissioners ( Bob Hopkins ) and a southwestern bell attorney were convicted of bribery in the case.
Now, a lawsuit has been filed to return 14 billion dollars to ratepayers on the argument that the 2-1 was invalid because the bribed vote of Hopkins was illegal so the legal vote was 1-1 and the rate increase was not approved by the CC.
AT&T, then SW Bell, argues against the lawsuit and AG Scott Pruitt sides with AT&T before the Oklahoma Supreme Court.
On September 25th, Pruitts campaign, one in which he faced no opposition, received six contributions from ATT executives in Georgia and Texas. They gave him $4,750 total in contributions.
Five days later on September 30, 2014, the Attorney Generals re-election campaign received $10,500 in contributions from ten more ATT executives including $4,000 from Wayne Watts of Dallas, Texas who was ATTs Senior Executive Vice President and General Counsel. A $1,000 contribution was made by Randall L. Stephenson, ATTs Chairman and CEO.
The next batch of contributions came October 14, 201435 of them on one day from ATT executives. They contributed $27,550 and the money came from a long list of ATT corporate offices including Senior Vice Presidents, attorneys, a Chief Marketing Officer, a corporate lobbyist and attorneys for an Oklahoma law firm that counts ATT as a client. Two days later, two other ATT executives contributed $1,250.
OK Energy Today asked Pruitts office for a comment and there was no reply. But now the Attorney General is fighting the latest effort by six ATT customers to have the Corporation Commission reconsider the matter. More than $16 billion is at stake as one of the six customers is retired FBI agent Bob Ricks, now the police chief in Edmond. At the time of the FBI investigation into Southwestern Bells bibery of then-Corporation Commissioner Bob Hopkins, Ricks was director of the Bureaus Oklahoma City office. He is more than familiar with the details of the crime that sent Hopkins and Southwestern Bell Attorney William Anderson to prison. He was not involved in last years effort before the State Supreme Court but joined the cause this time.
A hearing is set for Nov. 3 before the Corporation Commission. Attorney General Pruitt filed a motion in opposition to the Commissions review of the matter, and asked for a hearing en banc before anything is considered by an Administration Law Judge at the commission.
http://okenergytoday.com/2015/10/at...er-he-sided-with-firm-in-old-rate-case-fight/