Missouri utility regulators launch investigation into Spire whistleblower allegations

The Missouri Public Service Commission opened an investigation into whistleblower allegations against natural gas giant Spire.

In late September, The Star was the first to report on a former Spire employee’s claims that his superiors had instructed him on how to hide and even destroy documents to keep them from state regulators.

The documents allegedly contained information that Spire believed would hurt its forthcoming case for raising rates on Missouri natural gas customers.

On Thursday, the Public Service Commission has authorized its staff to investigate further, including accessing Spire’s facilities, reviewing documents and subpoenaing information. The commission’s staff has until Dec. 17 to provide a status report on the investigation and its recommendations.

Both the Public Service Commission’s motion to open an investigation and Spire’s response earlier this month are marked confidential and are not available to the public. Forrest Gossett, Public Service Commission spokesperson, declined to comment on the investigation Thursday.

Spire welcomes investigation, denies wrongdoing

Spire spokesperson Jason Merrill said the company plans to cooperate with the investigation and denied wrongdoing in an emailed statement to The Star.

“We welcome the Missouri Public Service Commission’s investigation into untrue statements made by a former employee regarding the handling of documents,” Merrill said.

He added that the company had conducted its own internal investigation, including reviewing an audio recording retained by the whistleblower, and found “no violation of company policies.”

“No company records were destroyed or concealed, and the document referred to by the former employee is preserved in the company’s files,” he wrote.

“Spire has retained the audio recording at issue, a transcript of the same, the internal investigation report, and witness interview notes, all in accordance with its Records and Information Management Policy.”

What do we know about the Spire whistleblower?

The St. Louis-based whistleblower is a former employee of Spire’s regulatory department whose last day with the company was Sept. 4. Court filings show that the employee sued Spire for discrimination in the Eastern District Court of Missouri in 2023.

“Plaintiff alleges Spire illegally discriminated against him on the basis of race, color, sex, and/or age and later took illegal retaliatory employment actions against him for reporting the alleged discriminatory actions to Spire’s human resources department,” the lawsuit states.

The employee’s age, race, color and gender identity have not been shared publicly. The employee has not responded to emails or texts from The Star for comment.

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