LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — When companies like Southwest Gas and NV Energy ask the state to approve rate hikes, they have to justify asking customers to pay more.

But some of the spending these utilities have tried to slip into in recent instances of rate hikes is nothing more than a slap in the face to customers.

Golf membership and massage. Golden Knights hockey games and bartenders. First-class travel and spa treatments. All that The Energy and Policy Institute’s newly released report shows Southwest Gas wanted Nevada customers to pay for.

“These types of expenses erode public trust in regulators because of the way companies bury them in their tax filings and it takes a lot of work to dig them up,” said Stephanie Chase, EPI Research and Communications Manager.

The Energy and Policy Institute — a clean energy consumer watchdog group — did that work, combing through thousands of public records to highlight inappropriate spending that utilities across the country are trying to pass on to consumers.

You can read the full report below.

When it comes to Southwest Gas…

“They wanted to charge customers for employee massages and catering and entertainment at Vegas Golden Knights games, and manicures and pedicures and spousal trips for board members,” Chase said.

Supporting documents linked to the report break some of this down.

In his 2018 assessment caseSouthwest Gas included the cost of weekly and biweekly massages from the European Massage Therapy School, as well as a golf course membership, a bartender, two apartments it rents in Las Vegas and hotel rooms at Vdara.

Year 2020Southwest Gas tried to charge Nevada customers for catering and entertainment at T-Mobile Arena as well as expenses paid to a ziplining company. They also tried to sneak in fees for a board member’s manicure/pedicure, an in-room movie and minibar at the Four Seasons, fees for luxury cars and first-class flights, including expenses for a senior executive’s spouse to travel to board meetings.

“It says they just don’t care about the consumer! They care about their profits and making their shareholders profit,” Henderson homeowner Wayne Bernath said in February to a story we did about runaway gas bills.

We’ve been hearing from customers across the valley all year that the costs are too high.

“They just come up with anything they can say to try to justify it but it’s not defensible. These rate hikes? Not so much!” Bernath said.

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EPI’s report shows that an auditor at the Nevada Public Utilities Commission went through a painstaking process to catch many of the inappropriate costs that Southwest Gas tried to sneak into its rate hike requests.

PUC staff recommended that the commission not approve some of the expenditures but others were approved.

“What message is that to the taxpayer,” I asked.

“I think it sends the message that the company is looking out for its shareholders and not after the interests of its customersChase replied.

In response to EPI’s report, Southwest Gas sent us the following statement.

NV Energy had two questionable expenses mentioned in EPI’s report.

Nevada law prohibits public utilities from charging taxpayers for advertising and political advertising. But the report says NV Energy’s bill attachments included corporate image building or goodwill advertising — costs it generally tried to recover from the customer.

We also found a second incident involving NV Energy.

“NV Energy gave (mobile phone) power banks to all participants in swag bags at this lithium conference that Governor Lombardo held earlier in the year and the power banks were labeled with wildfire safety information and the company’s website, but that’s not at all the topic of the lithium conference, Chase said.

Energy and Policy Institute

NV Energy sent us the following statement.

EPI tells 13 Investigates they are working with advocacy groups in Nevada on public utility accountability and transparency in the legislation and hope something will come to a vote in the 2025 session.