Rep. Ryan calls for resignation of Central Hudson CEO

Saba Ali, Poughkeepsie Journal
·2 min read

Rep. Pat Ryan on Wednesday morning called for the resignation of Central Hudson Energy Group CEO Charles Freni on the floor of Congress, stating the utility company failed to fix a billing issue that continues to cost residents hundreds of thousands of dollars.

For the past year, Hudson Valley residents have been receiving exorbitant bills due to errors in the company's billing system overcharging customers and neglecting to charge other.

"We need a new leader who will come in, improve service, finally fix these systemic problems, and start the critical work to rebuild trust," said Ryan (D-Gardiner).

Rep. Pat Ryan of the 18th C.D. in New York, photographed at 2 Alices Coffee Lounge in downtown Newburgh Jan. 12, 2023.
Rep. Pat Ryan of the 18th C.D. in New York, photographed at 2 Alices Coffee Lounge in downtown Newburgh Jan. 12, 2023.

Rep. Marc Molinaro, a Hudson Valley Republican with a district stretching west to Ithaca, also supported the claim for new leadership of Central Hudson. He, Ryan and other elected officials have been pressing both the state and the company to correct this issue.

“It’s time for new leadership at Central Hudson. I have seen firsthand the chaos they have created for Hudson Valley residents and have been astonished by their failure to take ownership for this disaster. Central Hudson needs solutions to regain the public’s trust,” said Molinaro.

"Central Hudson continues to apologize for the unfortunate impacts that implementation of the new system has had on our customers and key stakeholders. Our number one priority has been and remains resolution of issues with the system, and we continue to make progress," Central Hudson spokesman Joe Jenkins said.

Jenkins said Central Hudson also hopes to meet with Ryan and other elected officials to show them how they are improving the system.

"We are 100% committed to rebuilding relationships with Congressman Ryan and all our stakeholders and to resolving any remaining issues with the system expeditiously," Jenkins said.

The congressman started his speech listing examples of residents who were overbilled such as a farmer in Ulster Park who received a bill for $16,585 and contemplated suicide because the debt put her at risk of losing her farm, and the mayor of Newburgh who received a bill for $708,000 for a single month.

The New York's Public Service Commission's six-month investigation, prompted by some 4,000 customer complaints, revealed that managers ignored employee warnings that the new customer information and billing system wasn’t ready for its September 2021 debut.

The system was incapable of handling the complex billing scenarios it was designed for and was riddled with programming bugs that led to overcharges and delays, the PSC noted.

The commission attributed the missteps to Central Hudson’s “negligence, lack of appropriate training, lack of proper system testing, misuse of resources, and an overall lack of readiness.”

Saba Ali: Sali1@poughkeepsiejournal.com: 845-451-4518: @MsSabaAli.

This article originally appeared on Poughkeepsie Journal: Congressman Pat Ryan calls for Central Hudson CEO's resignation