Sens. Gordon, Sampson, Harding Statement on PURA Deleted Text Messages

Sen. Jeff Gordon, Sen. Rob Sampson and Sen. Stephen Harding issued the following statement regarding the revelation that Connecticut’s top utilities regulator Public Utilities Regulatory Authority Chairwoman Marissa Gillett deleted text messages being sought by a pair of gas utilities in an ongoing lawsuit challenging last year’s cuts to gas rates.

“This is highly concerning. What did she know and when did she know it? The governor should be asking those same questions.

These messages could shed light on possible collusion between Gillett and the Democratic Chairs of the Energy & Technology Committee about a public relations campaign to help Gillett.

Public officials are to be accountable and keep records of their communications. Why did she not do this?

We need answers. We need transparency. The overburdened ratepayers of Connecticut deserve that.

We will be formally asking the legislature’s newly-created Government Oversight Committee to look into this in a bipartisan fashion to restore people’s faith in their state government.

It looks to the average, hard-working Connecticut resident struggling to pay high electric bills that it is too convenient for critical text messages to somehow be deleted. She is just now admitting it under legal questioning?

Again: What did she know and when did she know it?”