Duke Energy Shareholders Underwrite $10 Million Cost Of Hosting DNC Convention Last Year

If you were furious at Duke Energy's corrupt antics before, you will not at all be pleased when you read this. It seems that Duke Energy, which is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, extended a $10 million line of credit to the Democratic National Committee's local host committee last year to help underwrite the cost of hosting last year's national convention in Charlotte after the DNC struggled to raise the money it needed to put on the convention. Apparently Barack Obama's campaign was unable or unwilling to share any of the $1 billion it raised for his re-election campaign last year.

The DNC host committee raised only $24.1 million of the $36.6 million goal it set for hosting the convention. Duke has now written off the line of credit it extended to the host committee, a move that cost Duke's shareholders $6 million in earnings after the company claimed the loss; the balance of the $10 million the company saved in federal taxes on its $1.9 billion in earnings last year by claiming a deduction on its tax return. Campaign contributions aren't ordinarily tax-deductible.  Duke's CEO Jim Rogers defended the move:

Rogers has maintained Duke’s financial support was for the good of a city making its star turn before an international audience, and so good for Duke. He has said the company would have also supported a Republican convention.

“At the end of the day we’ll do our best to get our money back,” he said in a January interview. “But if we don’t, it’s just a contribution we’re making I think for the greater good of our community.” 

The $10 million is not all Duke dumped on the convention. It donated $1.5 million in in-kind expenses to host the convention, and it put $4.1 million in a separate fund to put on parties boosting the city according to the Charlotte Observer. Rogers personally contributed $339,000 for the cause. But there was a quid pro quo by the Obama administration for Duke's generosity, of course:

Duke and Progress Energy each got $200 million in federal stimulus money for smart grid improvements in 2009. Duke’s Cliffside power plant won a $125 million “advanced coal” tax credit from the Department of Energy, and a plant under construction in Indiana got $460 million in federal, state and local incentives.

Duke said it expected no favoritism from the administration, noting it had agreed with Democrats on some issues but sided with Republican positions on others.  

So Duke got nearly a half billion dollars in government assistance for its $3.3 billion Edwardsport plant. Duke's Indiana ratepayers are paying nearly $2 billion of those costs through a 14.5% rate increase over two years to help pay for the costly overruns associated with construction of the Edwardsport power plant. News reports suggested Duke was eating the balance of the $3.3 billion costs, but we now know taxpayers picked up a half billions dollars of that amount.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/03/01/3885178/duke-energy-wont-be-repaid-from.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/03/01/3885178/duke-energy-wontDuke and Progress Energy each got $200 million in federal stimulus money for smart grid improvements in 2009. Duke’s Cliffside power plant won a $125 million “advanced coal” tax credit from the Department of Energy, and a plant under construction in Indiana got $460 million in federal, state and local incentives.
Duke said it expected no favoritism from the administration, noting it had agreed with Democrats on some issues but sided with Republican positions on others.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/03/01/3885178/duke-energy-wont-be-repaid-from.html#storylink=cpy

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