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NEW ORLEANS - District “D” Councilmember Jared C. Brossett has released the following statement regarding the investigation into Entergy New Orleans' preparation and response to Hurricane Ida:
"Today as your regulator, the Council moved forward to investigate Entergy New Orleans' actions following Hurricane Ida. We also approved a management audit of ENO and explored utility ownership reform. After hearing from Entergy executives, I am looking forward to what the upcoming investigation reveals.
The executives we heard from discussed what happened, but they refused to commit to hardening the system and making it more sustainable. We have a long road ahead, and I believe changes have to be made, particularly because we are experiencing stronger and more frequent storms due to climate change. It is critical that ratepayers are not forced to bear the burden of fortifying our power grid, which is why I have written to ask President Biden to expand the Stafford Act or provide a Community Development Block Grant to help cover those costs. What I found most troubling today was that when public comment began, Entergy took that as their cue to leave, entirely uninterested in hearing from their customers.
I am committed to ensuring such a widespread failure does not happen again by hardening the energy infrastructure and demanding transparency from Entergy, even if executives refuse to listen to those affected by the blackout that occurred after Ida."
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