Mississippi Public Service Commissioner De’Keither Stamps received a warm welcome Monday as he presented the Lauderdale County Board of Supervisors with a check for more than $7.2 million. The funds come from taxes on public utilities that are overseen by the statewide commission.
Stamps, who represents the central district on the commission, said the PCS wears a number of different hats, including roles in governing utilities, promoting economic development and general problem solving. The commission’s main goal, he said, is to make sure utilities are paying their fair share.
“Our number one job is making sure that each county and city receives the appropriate amount of resources. From the utility companies for the investment that they’ve made inside of your county,” he said.
Over the past few years, Stamps said, the Public Service Commission has worked with Lauderdale County to connect the county’s industrial parks to power, gas, water, sewer and other utilities. Those utilities are the building blocks of economic growth, he said.
While it is occasionally excluded from Mississippi’s metropolitan areas, Lauderdale County is one of the state’s most populous regions, and fostering growth and development is good for everyone, Stamps said, and the PSC wants to support that growth wherever possible.
“Keep up the great work. We’ve got a lot more great things to do,” he said.
Supervisors thanked Stamps for visiting and for bringing the funding to Lauderdale County.
Supervisor Joe Norwood said the Board of Supervisors meets on the first and third Mondays of each month, and Stamps is welcome back anytime.