In the Oct. 23 edition of the Quoddy Tides, a news article concerning the Eastport City Council meeting reported me commenting "I think it's outrageous" that the city was billed $787 by attorney Scott Sells for a 6-minute phone call that I made to the attorney after I saw the city's comments to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Downeast LNG's draft environmental impact statement.

The story was also printed in the Maine Sunday Telegram on Nov. 8.

I was in error. Mr. Sells billed the city properly for work he was requested to perform before FERC by the then-City Council president.

My intent was to pay the City of Eastport for any time billed because of my phone call, not in any way to suggest that Mr. Scott Sells of The Sells Law Firm, LLC, did anything wrong in his billing to the City of Eastport.

I also made the statement at the same City Council meeting that I believed that Mr. Sells had acted in good faith in his representation of the City of Eastport before FERC and I made the motion before the City Council that Mr. Sells' invoices be paid immediately, and indeed I voted for that motion to pay Mr. Sells for his work.

I apologize to Mr. Sells, The Quoddy Tides, and the Maine Sunday Telegram for my error and any embarrassment I may have caused. I was wrong. Mr. Sells represented his client properly, in good faith, and invoiced that work properly.

Capt. Robert J. Peacock

Member, Eastport City Council

Lubec