A Deep Dive, A Full House, And A Long Road Ahead For The Electric Department

By Editor | July 30, 2025 |

DAVE’S WORLD
By David Howell

Monday night’s meeting was the first true deep dive into the Water Valley Electric Department that I’ve seen in my 20-year career at the North Mississippi Herald.

And folks, the room was packed.

Now, I’ve seen big turnouts before. There was that city hall meeting years ago when the smoking ordinance was on the table—you could barely hear the board over the coughing fits. Another time, the courtroom was standing-room only as Yalobusha County debated switching from the Beat System to the Unit System of government. Emotions ran high, and every seat was filled.

But Monday night’s meeting had a different weight to it. This wasn’t about roads or smoking. This was about the electric system that powers our town—an aging system, we learned, that’s been quietly underfunded for decades.

Engineer Jeff Atwell laid it out plainly: this isn’t a five-year problem. It’s not a ten-year problem. It’s a long-building issue with no quick fix.
And while a lot of ground was covered during the meeting, there are a few important points that didn’t get discussed in detail—and they’re worth sharing.

First, the electric department will pay the city’s general fund $615,000 this fiscal year through a process called a Payment In Lieu Of Taxes, or PILOT. That number is based on the depreciated taxable value of the system—$6.1 million.

For perspective, Amory’s city-owned electric department serves nearly twice as many customers (3,943) and is valued at $20.7 million. Yet Amory pays just over $800,000 back to its city government.

That means Water Valley’s electric department is handing over about 8.3 percent of its $7.36 million in annual revenue—far more, percentage-wise, than most municipal systems. Many operate with a PILOT rate that’s likely half of that or less.

There’s been some talk about reducing the PILOT payment by five or ten percent for the coming fiscal year. That wouldn’t break the general fund, but it could give the electric department a little breathing room.

But it’s not all gloom. The Tennessee Valley Authority has been a strong partner in recent years, especially since Kagan Coughlin stepped in as Director of the Yalobusha County Economic Development District.

TVA doesn’t just keep the lights on—they’ve been putting real money into our community:

They’re covering half the cost of a $2 million project at the W.C. Gardiner Industrial Park, which includes a new road and a 3,000-square-foot pad ready for construction.

They funded the electric vehicle chargers on Main Street. For the first five years, the revenue from those chargers goes straight to the city’s electric department.

They support adult education through Base Camp Coding Academy, helping equip local residents with modern tech skills.

TVA has been in Water Valley’s corner—and if we’re going to rebuild this system the right way, partnerships like that matter.
Monday’s meeting was a start—a strong mix of accountability, transparency, and civic engagement.

But it’s also a moment worth putting in context. Because just a little ways up the road, in Holly Springs, another city-owned electric system has reached the point of collapse.

This week, the Mississippi Public Service Commission released the findings of an in-depth investigation into the Holly Springs Utility District (HSUD), conducted by Silverpoint Consulting. The findings were described as dire.

According to the report, Holly Springs’ electric system is caught in what consultants call a “death spiral”—brought on by decades of mismanagement, poor planning, and chronic neglect. The system is plagued by dangerous overgrowth, unmaintained substations, a failing metering infrastructure, and what the report calls an overstressed operations group. The most damning conclusion? That city leadership had long failed to act on previously issued, practical recommendations.

PSC Chairman Chris Brown didn’t sugarcoat it:

“This crisis didn’t happen overnight—it’s the result of decades of neglect and mismanagement. The system is in a severe state of disrepair, and turning it around will require an extraordinary, coordinated effort.”

TVA and other partners may now have to step in just to stabilize the situation in Holly Springs.

It’s a chilling example of what happens when infrastructure is ignored for too long. It’s also a warning sign for other small cities—like ours—who still have time to turn things around.

Water Valley is not Holly Springs. But we’d be foolish not to pay attention.

No, the problem didn’t happen overnight. And no, it won’t be fixed overnight. But Monday night’s meeting felt like a start.

Now we just have to keep the lights on—and the momentum going.

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