“I have no doubt that we have authority to commence this lawsuit, but I absolutely think it’s the wrong thing to do.”
Ottawa County Board Chair John Teeples voted against pursuing litigation against Consumers Energy.
“We’re stewards of the taxpayer’s dollars. We have a deficit in community mental health, we have an emergency problem in IT, we have another million bucks. This resolution commences a lawsuit with an unknown budget, with an unknown assessment of the merits of winning or losing. How can we possibly say we’re going to give a blanket check to our litigators and move ahead?”
In February, citing concerns over power grid reliability, the Board requested the Michigan Public Services Commission hold a new hearing about the closing of the Port Sheldon coal plant. The MPSC denied that request.
Commissioner Jordan Jorritsma stated the board’s resolution was forwarded to the U.S. Department of Energy, and a political appointee from the Department of the Interior was aware of the situation surrounding the plant.
The plant is scheduled for closure on May 31st.
