MLGW CEO Doug McGowen publicly responded to the MLGW tree trimming scandal. The traditional press has yet to cover the scandal in any way, to either acknowledge the scandal or cover it as a controversy. The  $100M scandal has gone viral on social media, with the support of Shelby Observer, JustMyMemphis and Purenewsonline.

Regarding the tree trimming scandal, McGowen called the public arguments made by me and others baseless and meritless in his MLGW Board meeting response on 11/5/25 at 01:19:10. My public comment was made at 00:07:15. McGowen's rhetoric is both inaccurate and unprofessional.

The questioning of the 2024 MLGW $23.2 per mile trim costs, in comparison to Nashville ($6.6K) and Knoxville ($7.2K), is not baseless or meritless. Transparent questioning is needed in the discourse, with the argument basis coming from public information requests serviced by MLGW, Nashville Electric Service and Knoxville Utility Board.

Besides, questions regarding MLGW’s Electrical division need to be asked. Why? MLGW is not faring well in residential rates, based on their own 2025 publication ranking 17 out of 40, for homes with lowest electrical consumption. See page 4 of the MLGW Bill Comparison.

Given MLGW's forward leaning rate increase posture, with 4% higher rates coming in 2026, MLGW as a public utility should be questioned. In fact, regarding electric rates and per the MLGW Bill Comparison, electrical rates ranking lag most of MLGW’s peers that are TVA supplied. With MLGW’s economies of greater scale, MLGW should have the lowest rates of their TVA supplied peers. But they don’t. Out-of-control public spending contributes greatly to this disappointing electric rate performance among its TVA peers.

McGowen also said that all tree trimming RFPs and contract data are readily available for public inspection. Not in this case. My 10/24/25 FOIA on the matter has yet to be serviced. MLGW’s 11/4/25 response to my FOIA says: “We are still in the process of retrieving, reviewing, and/or redacting the requested records.” And I recently wrote a blog compleneting MLGW's transparency under McGowen. At this point, so much for that. Hopefully it changes, as I have a bunch of MLGW FOIAs now outstanding on tree trimming. 

McGowen also said that Memphis had 37% of its annual right of way trimming in more expensive to trim backyards compared to Nashville at 20% and Knoxville at 10%. What McGowen did not address in his statement is why 5 yr contracts when there is a 3yr. tree trimming cycle? And why are per mile trim costs exploding upward from $23.2K in 2024 per mile to $27.8K in 2026. The former is a 19.8% per mile increase when there is no overgrowth and no need to trim more than 1.4K miles !

MLGWs 2026 budget proposal calls for right of way tree trimming to increase to $39M from $35.5M in 2025. The tree trimming budget request is embarrassingly absurd, indefensible and makes no sense. 

In short, I can get nowhere close to $228M for tree trimming over 5 yrs while taking MLGW's side and incorporating all their arguments like overgrowth and newly now, increased expense of backyard cutting. Its like with corporate PILOTs when incorporating the arguments of PILOT advocates in Memphis as a poor City. So I take Knox County's  PILOT count of 50 double it to 100 becuase of the population difference and then double it again for being a poor city and get to 200. I cannot get anywhere close to the PILOT count of 500 in Shelby County. Same here on MLGW tree trimming!

Anyway, while leveraging the work of the Taxpayer Justice Institute, I am not questioning at all, MLGW’s 2023-25 trimming spend. The former is an accommodation to MLGW’s rational overgrowth and accelerated trim argument. At the same time, cycle tree trimming costs should be coming way down in 2026 with MLGW utility right of ways completely trimmed with no overgrowth. But those costs are absurdly going up!  

Further, this blog is making another MLGW accommodation by analyzing and accepting McGowen’s claim of 37% backyard trimming, against Nashville’s and Knoxville’s respectively, 20% and 10% backyard trimming. And here are the numbers:

McGowen said, tree companies quote 3x to 5x more for backyard trimming over standard right of way trimming. This analysis used 4x. So given a $39M budget, both standard cost per mile and backyard cost per mile can be calculated. For 2026 MLGW’s TJI caclulated standard per mile of $13,202 and backyard per mile rate of $52,810 exceeds Knoxville’s 2024 per trimmed mile cost by 138% and Nashville 218%. Makes no sense. NONE!

When using the higher Knoxville rates for trimming 1.4K miles with no overgrowth, the most that I can get the MLGW 2026 budget up to for right of way tree trimming is $16.4M. MLGW is proposing $39M or $23M in excess for 2026.

This exercise is like my PILOT argument exercise in trying to incorporate all of the arguments of my opposition. Cycle tree trimming, under McGowen, remains a $80-100M public ripoff through public contract. No doubt about it!

Meanwhile, as the MLGW tree trimming scandal goes viral around the Internet, the local press is silent. The Memphis press is  not even willing to cover local utility tree trimming costs as a controversy. The local traditional press is nothing more, than an elitist informercial, while not reporting on public ripoffs at all. This Memphis press reality, in large part, is why Memphians are largely civicly ignorant, across all demographics and educational levels, as Memphis fails to move forward. 

In my view, the local press has a history of protecting punk elitist led public sabatoge like with Kirby High School being infested with rats and the nonreporting of the brand new charter school openinging right across the street. Or reporting all of the problems at the impound lot, before it was privatized. Or the non-reporting of the Cobblestones and Mud Island being ripped off during Tom Lee Park construction. The local press protects and is a partner in elitist led public ripoffs, as Memphis declines. That's all....