EPB within a week will file a motion to dismiss the first of two whistleblower lawsuits filed against it by former city contractor Don Lepard, who made the complaints on behalf of the cities of Chattanooga, East Ridge and Red Bank.
Harold DePriest, president and CEO of EPB, said the lawsuits were "slowing down" the utility's efforts to settle charges of streetlight overbilling with Chattanooga officials.
Lepard has asked for more than $10 million in damages for what he says is 20 years of overbilling by EPB, violations of the False Claims Act, and retaliation against his company, Global Green Lighting, which brought the overbilling to the attention of city and utility officials.
EPB on Tuesday acknowledged much of what has already been widely reported - that it overbilled taxpayers for energy based on thousands of streetlights that were misclassified or simply missing. Yet EPB also claimed that a number of offsetting charges reduced an estimated $1.5 million in overbilling to just $17,000.
Several of the offsets claimed by the utility, including $800,000 it says it is owed because of a miscalculation in regards to how many hours per year each light actually shines, remain in dispute, and represent the utility's bargaining position in its stalled negotiations with the city.
"We're at the point now where we have all the facts we need to sit down and work this out," DePriest said.
The utility's statement was released in concert with the final draft of a report by auditing firm Mauldin & Jenkins, which in periodic public releases has included varying results.
The auditor's conflicting numbers over the months arose from "bad information," said partner Warren McEwen, which he said has since been corrected.
Read more in tomorrow's Times Free Press.