Coakley seeks record $16 million fine for National Grid

Attorney General Martha Coakley is asking state utility regulators to levy a record fine against National Grid for what she called an inadequate ¬response to power outages after Tropical Storm Irene and a rare October snowstorm….

At the Massachusetts Public Interest Research Group, a Boston nonprofit that advocates for consumers, legislative director Deirdre Cummings said she was also heartened by the hefty fine Coakley recommended. But, she added, only time will tell if it is large enough to prompt change.

“Certainly it’s enough for the company to take notice,” she said, “I do know that unless there is a fine associated with poor performance or failures, they’re not going to fix the problem.”