Entergy bucket trucks

Entergy Mississippi announced that customers’ bills will go down by at least $30 a month this summer, thanks to the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

The move is part of a program the Mississippi Public Service Commission kicked off in January requesting from any utility it has rate jurisdiction over — such as Entergy Mississippi, Mississippi Power Co., CenterPoint Energy, C Spire and Atmos Energy — to submit plans on how they will credit those tax deductions and rebates to their customers.

The tax overhaul, which became law on Dec. 22, includes a reduction in public utilities’ tax rate.

“We intend to ensure that our customers receive timely benefits from the new tax reforms,” said Haley Fisackerly, Entergy Mississippi president and chief executive officer in a press release. “The tax reduction will allow us to reduce rates, provide substantial bill credits and lower our customers’ bills during the high-usage summer months.”

Under the previous corporate tax rate, utility companies were expected to pay a 35 percent tax rate. Once the act became law, that rate was lowered to 21 percent.

Entergy said in a statement that it expects residential customer bills to drop more than $30 per month during July, August and September, thanks to a combination of lower-rates and short-term bill credits.

The formal plan will be filed in mid-March as part of the company’s annual rate filing, the statement says.

Entergy Mississippi provides electricity to about 447,000 customers in 45 counties.

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