JACKSON, Miss. (Legal Newsline) - The intentions of Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood were discussed Monday at a hearing concerning his request for information from energy provider Entergy.

Entergy is refusing to hand over years of records requested by Hood, who feels the company may be overcharging customers. Entergy, in filing an action in federal court, called Hood's Civil Investigative Demands "a fishing expedition" and said it is not subject to investigations from his office.

"It's not that we won't give these documents to the attorney general; he needs to go through the Public Service Commission," Entergy spokesperson Mara Hartmann said, according to a report in the Clarion-Ledger of Jackson.

"They are the proper regulatory agency for public utilities."

Last week, a federal judge decided not to grant Entergy's request for an injunction. Instead, Hood's complaint against the company is being heard in Hinds County Chancery Court.

Judge Dewayne Thomas said he hopes to reach a decision by the end of November, the report says.

Hood has said he requested the documents because of Entergy's past in Louisiana. He says the state's Consumer Protection Act allows him to investigate, and that Entergy Mississippi buys electricity and fuel for Mississippi at inflated rates from its sister companies and overcharges Mississippi customers.

Entergy agreed to refund $72 million over similar allegations in Louisiana in 2000 and was ordered to pay $34 million to New Orleans customers in February.

"You gotta look at the trees before you look at the forest... This is not a rate case, rather their activity," Hood said, according to the report.

From Legal Newsline: Reach John O'Brien by e-mail at john@legalnewsline.com.