NEW ORLEANS — Mayor LaToya Cantrell today announced that the City of New Orleans will receive an additional $2.89 million in revenue from 2020 Entergy New Orleans franchise fees.
“This money will be one important step in helping to fill our budget gaps. This will go a long way toward giving people the resources they need,” said Cantrell. “I would like to thank the team at Entergy New Orleans for working proactively with my administration to identify funds that support our city.”
The new revenue is especially important because of the City’s pandemic-related financial challenges. Cantrell’s team identified franchise fees paid by utility companies operating in public rights-of-way as a potential source of additional funds.
Cantrell said franchise fees equal about $50 million annually, or 7 percent of all City revenue.
Utility companies such as Entergy generally pay a franchise fee based on 5 percent of their annual revenue. The City’s Office of Utilities, under the direction of Jonathan Rhodes, has worked with utility partners to assess the franchise fee projections for the remainder of 2020. In response, Entergy conducted an audit and was able to identify and allocate an additional $2.89 million in franchise fee payments for 2020. This payment will be given to the City in the form of a credit to offset the City’s energy bills, effectively saving the City nearly $3 million during the current budget year.
