Long Island Power Authority Secrecy Exposed In Federal Court

Online, January 11, 2013 (Newswire.com) - The Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) Trustee election controversy is back in Federal Court for reargue. Maverick ratepayers exposed more secrets of LIPA in an effort to force the public elections by way of an action in Federal District Court (EDNY) in Central Islip, NY. LIPA continues to hide financial and operational information from Freedom of Information request including demands issued by a Suffolk County appointed LIPA Oversight Committee.

The ratepayers assert that LIPA is hiding rafts of financial malfeasance including a huge drain of Long Island Ratepayer monies to the United Kingdom by way of illegal agreements with UK based National Grid.

LIPA was originally designed to have regionally elected trustees at its inception in 1985. Those elections were illegally stalled until 1995 when voter's rights to elections were illegally repealed (without local "home rule" approvals by your elected officials). The litigants assert that elected trustee candidates are still defined in NYS Election Law and as such the Board of Elections MUST put the three-petitioned candidates on the ballot.

NY Governor Andrew Cuomo proposed the "ending of LIPA" by way of privatization. However, the maverick litigants challenge the Governor's plan as "empty" because there is "nothing to sell". Further, the litigants remind the Governor that if either he, or County Executives Steve Bellone, or Ed Mangano, agree to trustee elections then secret governance (by way of Albany and embezzlers) ends; and then LIPA becomes locally manageable, competitive, greener, auditable, and eventually lower rates and relief for ratepayers.

The litigants are also seeking to remove Federal Judge Joanna Seybert from their case because she is in a RESPONDENT in another case by one of the litigants (a matter suing former Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson dating back to 2006.) "Judge Seybert is conflicted in this matter and never should have heard, or worse, judged any of it" claims an onlooker.

But can LIPA --- the nation's lowest rated utility with nearly the nation's highest rates --- continue to dodge open governance by way of legal and political tricks?

The three insurgent ratepayers --- an energy expert, a business strategist, and an attorney --- claim their goal is to slash LIPA rates dramatically through a combination of new efficiencies, eliminating obscure fees and cronyism, and allowing open competition and local municipal power authorities.