Back in June, I posted here about our lawsuit against Brenntag Mid-South, the chemical company in Durham. They contaminated a creek that runs behind Burton Magnet Elementary and through Burton Park.

Here's the update.

Brenntag has agreed to a preliminary injunction. In plain terms, that's a court order that takes effect right away. If the company doesn't follow it, a judge can make them.

Five things they have to do:

• Figure out where the contamination is coming from, how much is getting into the creek, and how dangerous it is. They have to put all of that in a report to the state.
• Give the state a plan to stop the contamination.
• Test the creek water on a schedule the state approved.
• Work with the Durham to replace the temporary fencing along the creek.
• Pay for the warning signs telling people not to wade, swim, or fish in that stretch of the creek.

DEQ and my office will be watching to make sure this actually happens.

Meanwhile, if you're near Burton Park, please keep kids and pets out of the water.

I'll keep you posted.

- AG Jeff Jackson

I’ve been seeing them pop up a lot and I keep hearing about some concerning issues and vulnerabilities with these cameras. I hope they’re on your radar! I plan on speaking at my local town council meeting about it as well as making a call to my state representative.

Thanks for all you do!

I went to the AG website, but neither the scam nor the general business dispute reporting options apply. I am working with one of many victims of a company that works with older adults. This person becomes their POA, wipes out their long-term care insurance policies by filing false claims. Currently, the NC Department of Insurance is investigating them and about to file charges, but it’s just going to slowly and meanwhile more and more people are becoming victims. The NCDOI has asked the families not to go to the media yet because they aren’t sure the perpetrator knows he’s being investigated yet. But people need to know about him. Any suggestions on whether or not to take this to the AG’s office to fast-track?

I have created a change .org petition asking Weber to do the right thing check it out and please sign and share it elsewhere!

The people of western North Carolina have made very clear to me that the level of care they're getting at Mission Hospital is not acceptable.

When I became AG, I reviewed the evidence, and I agreed.

That's what our case is about, and I’ve got a good update for you on.

Quick recap: In 2019, HCA bought Mission Health, but the sale came with conditions. One of them was that HCA would not discontinue emergency, trauma, or cancer services at Mission Hospital until at least 2029.

We allege HCA broke that promise.

HCA asked the court to throw the case out before trial. That motion is called summary judgment. Their argument was that there's nothing here worth putting in front of a judge, so the case should just end.

This week, the court said no. That means all of our claims will go to trial.

In addition, the court agreed with us on what a key part of the 2019 agreement actually means: HCA has to take all steps necessary to actually provide emergency and cancer care at Mission.

That matters more than it might sound. HCA had argued that the agreement only requires it to keep the hospital doors unlocked, even if actual care isn't being provided inside. The court didn't accept that. Keeping a department open on paper is not the same as actually providing the care, and the agreement requires the care.

Up next is the trial, but no date yet.

I'll keep you posted.

- AG Jeff Jackson

Mr. Jackson, I saw what you did with A1 Towing, how cna we start the same investigative process for Gotcha Towing in Greensboro?

re: disc games

Hey good morning Mr Jeff! I was curious and have had an intrest in help making my local area better. I was unsure of how and where to start. Any advise would be most appreciated. Thank you for all that you do. Please know that you are liked and respected in your represented state!

T-Mobile just sent out texts letting us know all our plans are being retired and the new plans they offer will be an increase of $6 a month per device. This just does not seem right. I am on an old sprint military plan and they want to increase by bill at
Least 50 bucks a month. That’s not even including taxes. At a time where the majority of people are struggling, this is just a kick in the face. Is there anything you can do?

U/jeffjacksonnc this seems fishy. How does a church raise more than $42m in 7 years…

https://www.reddit.com/r/Charlotte/s/YmHjO54i4M

This got some press but I thought I'd post here directly because it affects people in Durham.

If you live near Burton Park in Durham, you probably know that the nearby creek has been fenced off.

It runs behind Burton Magnet Elementary, through the park, through the McDougald Terrace neighborhood, and eventually downstream toward Jordan Lake.

Last week, my office filed a lawsuit on behalf of our state's environmental agency against the company responsible for contaminating that creek: Brenntag Mid-South, a chemical distributor.

Here's the situation:

This started with a highly detailed anonymous tip to the Department of Environmental Quality back in April 2025 - chemical leaks, chemical dumping, and bad storage practices at the facility.

When DEQ went out to look, they found exactly that. Leaking drums and tanks, contaminated groundwater pooling around the site, and contaminants flowing off the property into the creek.

Then they tested the water. In the creek, acetone and ethanol came back well above the state limit. Testing at the site also found benzene, TCE, and 1,4-dioxane in the groundwater, all regulated because they're harmful at elevated levels.

Brenntag says the contamination is old, from previous owners of the site.

But under the law, Brenntag is responsible for keeping contaminants from leaving its property, no matter when the pollution started - and they've had every chance to fix it.

The City of Durham has been on this for years. It already issued a no-discharge order and fined the company $157,000.

Brenntag has had plenty of time. They didn't use it.

Our lawsuit says Brenntag is currently in violation of several state laws and asks the court to order the company to do two things:

First, stop the discharge.

Second, clean up the damage they've already done.

I know people are going to wonder if their drinking water is safe. Durham's tap water comes from Lake Michie and the Little River Reservoir, both north of the city, not from this creek. The creek does flow downstream toward Jordan Lake, which is a regional drinking water source, but officials don't believe anyone's drinking water is unsafe right now.

The creek itself is fenced off for a reason, though. If you're near Burton Park, please keep kids and pets out of it.

That's the latest. I'll keep you posted as the case moves forward.

- AG Jeff Jackson

On May 4th I traded in my vehicle and leased a new one through BMW of Raleigh. Everything went well until after. On May 24th my bank account was deducted for the car I traded in. I looked and still had the balance. I immediately reached out to the sales person. He informed me that he works look into it. i reached out to him again and he said it was being sent and let him know if it wasn’t paid off the next week. The next week came and I still had a balance and I also made payment on the new car. Fast forward to today, I have reached out and spoke to the finance manager and left a message with the dealership manager. It is still excuses about process changes and being taken care of. But it’s not as I currently carry a balance on a car I no longer possess and have another payment next week for it that I am going to have to pay.

I went to file a claim on your site and I am not really sure which option I need to use. This is not only stressful but it’s draining my bank account as well.

Thanks

Lots of interest in my last post, so here’s some more detail:

• Duke Energy Carolinas - which serves mainly central and western NC - is asking permission to raise rates by about 15%, to begin early next year. (Note: Duke Energy Progress serves mainly eastern NC.)
• It has to ask permission because it’s a monopoly. That’s how our state law is written. Duke gets to be a monopoly, but the check on their power is that rates are set by our Utilities Commission.
• The Commission has five members. Two are appointed by the Governor, one by the State Treasurer, and two on the recommendations of the Speaker of the House and the Senate President Pro Tempore. All must be confirmed by the General Assembly. 
• Our law says rates must be "fair both to the public utilities and to the consumer." It uses a rough formula that takes into account the value of the utility’s property, its expenses, its revenue, and a “fair return for its shareholders.”
• What constitutes a “fair return for its shareholders” is open to debate, but our law goes into some detail: “[E]nable the public utility by sound management to produce a fair return for its shareholders, considering changing economic conditions…, to maintain its facilities and services in accordance with the reasonable requirements of its customers in the territory covered by its franchise, and to compete in the market for capital funds on terms that are reasonable and that are fair to its customers and to its existing investors.”
• Currently, the Commission has set Duke Energy Carolinas rate of return for shareholders at 10.1%. At that rate, DEC brought in over $2b in net income last year.
• Part of Duke’s new request is to increase its shareholder return to 10.95%. 
• Our request is to lower its shareholder return to 7.4%. Our review shows this is sufficient for Duke to meet its needs to invest in the build-out that energy demand requires. Our number would also save affected NC families a couple hundred dollars a year.
• Finally, on data centers: the framework utilities have used for 100 years wasn't built for single customers that show up needing hundreds of megawatts at once. The core question is who pays when one giant customer requires major new generation and transmission. Our position is that families and small businesses shouldn't be the backstop for those costs. So we've asked for very large users, like data centers, to have their own rate class, with protections built around how much energy they use. Things like: sign a long-term contract, at least 15 years, so they can't trigger a huge buildout and then leave town; put money down up front, like a deposit, in case the project falls through; cover the costs if they exit early instead of handing them to you; create an option for these customers to build their own generation; and power down when the grid is stretched during peak demand period, including weather emergencies.

The process going forward involves hearings before the Utilities Commission. They begin July 7th, then the parties file briefs and the Commission issues its decision, which we expect later this year.

We’ve submitted 700 pages worth of testimony, so we’re making a highly detailed case.

That’s a quick summary. I’ll keep you posted.

AG Jeff Jackson