Residents of central Arkansas are budgeting more for gas — not only for cars but for homes too. 

“Usually our bill is $50-100, but then, after November, it was $300 two months in a row,” UCA senior and Little Rock resident Christina Gomes said. 

Summit Utilities is a natural gas energy provider serving parts of Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas — including central Arkansas. 

In December, customers noticed higher bills, which led to an investigation by KATV’s “7 On Your Side.” The station uncovered that Summit billed roughly 167,000 Summit customers in Arkansas and Oklahoma incorrectly.

Summit responded after customers complained to news media — blaming high bills on internal data failures and increasing natural gas prices.

In October 2022, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said natural gas prices went up $3 per 1,000 cubic feet from 2021 and projected this rate to increase through winter.

However, Summit Utilities said they accidentally billed some customers based on estimated energy usage, not actual amounts. 

Kevin Carter, associate vice president for facilities at UCA, said there seems to be no issue with Summit Utilities or natural gas prices on campus.

“All campus facilities rely on natural gas for heating. The gas for all of the on-campus facilities is provided by Constellation Energy. Summit Utilities provides gas for all of our off-campus houses. We have not seen any significant changes on the Summit bills for the off-campus properties that are related to the overcharging incident,” Carter said.

In the event of price hikes, student fees would not change immediately, Carter said.

“The university has reserves set aside for unexpected expenses. We would not change the student’s rates in the middle of a fiscal year,” Carter said.

Patricia Smith, dean of the Honors College, wasn’t as lucky. Natural gas price increases and Summit’s corrections affected her energy bill.

“I believe at least some of the change in cost is due to the increasing cost of natural gas,” Smith said. 

Upset customers alerted Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin, who said Summit didn’t provide a sufficient explanation. His office is now investigating. 

“There are a number of factors that have led to the rise in gas bills by Summit Utilities including price, amount usage, days in billing cycle and whether the bill is based on actual or estimated usage, but I still have a lot of questions,” Griffin said.

Some customers took to social media to share poor experiences with customer service at Summit Utilities. 

Similarly, Gomes said the company was adamant that her high bill was correct and must be paid, only changing its mind after more customers complained.

“Now, after the situation reached the news, they said to call them to get the bill adjusted. They were not helpful at all, plus, didn’t even come to do a meter check when they told us someone would come do it,” Gomes said. 

Several Arkansas customers have made online comments about missing CenterPoint Energy, a natural gas provider that Summit acquired in January 2022.

Despite Summit attempting to make things right by sending corrected bills and not charging late fees for customers experiencing higher bills, there are still some inconsistencies with the new bills. 

Some customers received corrected bills that accurately reflect their energy usage, while others have received new bills that are even higher. 

Griffin said, “Summit Utilities’ leaders have assured me that all customers will only pay for the gas they’ve used. But I subscribe to the old Ronald Reagan adage: ‘Trust, but verify.’ I have looked closely at a number of bills that friends, neighbors and colleagues have shared with me.

“In some instances, the difference from one month to the next can be explained. But in other cases, the Summit bills are more puzzling. I am continuing to ask questions and will continue actively engaging with Summit to make sure that no Arkansan pays for gas they didn’t use,” he said.

The attorney general’s office encourages Summit customers to contact them with further issues regarding inaccurate bills and overcharging.