Stephen Caruso of Spotlight PA’s story
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HARRISBURG A 20-year-old consumer protection law that prohibits businesses from cutting off low-income consumers’ electricity in the winter was not renewed by state lawmakers as the legislative session came to a close.
Consumer groups claim that since the Public Utility Commission has incorporated nearly all of the protections into its own regulations, the failure to renew the law, known as Chapter 14, won’t result in a flood of disconnections.
However, they claim that when high energy prices put more and more pressure on low-income customers, policymakers lost a chance to enact stricter consumer protection laws.
Utility businesses, whose billing rights are granted under the expiring statute, are disappointed by the legislature’s inaction.
According to Terry Fitzpatrick, CEO of the Energy Association of Pennsylvania, a trade association that represents gas and electric utility companies, “we think it’s a shame that Chapter 14 wasn’t reauthorized because this law offers significant stability and certainty regarding utility billing and collection standards.”
At the moment, ratepayers who fall behind on their payments are locked into a repayment schedule under Chapter 14, which can vary from six months to five years based on their income level. The PUC, an independent five-member board chosen by the governor to regulate everything from taxis to telecommunications, will have the authority to establish individual payback programs upon petition after the law ends on December 31.
Until the start of the next session on January 7, lawmakers are not expected to return to Harrisburg.
The law, which was first established in 2004, was intended to improve consumer rights while making it simpler for energy providers to collect past-due bills.
In addition to allowing people to submit a medical note to prevent a shutdown, utility providers are required to notify ratepayers in advance of shutoffs. Additionally, they are unable to cut off low-income customers’ gas and electricity service between December 1 and March 31 of each year.
In exchange, the law eliminated the Public Utility Commission’s authority to create repayment schemes tailored to individual customers. Instead, before a consumer who is overdue on their bill can resume service, businesses are permitted to demand full payments, plus costs.
Other industry-friendly provisions are also included, like the ability for ratepayers to be held accountable for unpaid bills from another occupant even after they vacate.
According to Joline Price, a utility attorney with Community Legal Services, a Philadelphia-based firm, Chapter 14 was designed to target those who can afford to pay. However, it has really made things much more difficult for clients who are unable to pay.
Every ten years, the law needs to be renewed. Lawmakers acted unanimously in 2014.
However, in a dispute over more safeguards for customers facing growing utility bills, the Republican-majority state Senate and the Democratic-controlled state House failed to reach an agreement this year.
Community Legal Services and other consumer advocates claim that the protections provided by Chapter 14 are insufficient today. The rule permits businesses to add extra fees, fines, and deposits to the bills of low-income consumers, even if they are shielded from winter shutoffs.
These organizations highlight the significant proportion of debt held by low-income households and the surges in disconnections that occur when energy costs soar.
In a bill to reauthorize Chapter 14, state representative Rob Matzie (D., Beaver), who chairs the utility oversight committee, proposed a number of new protections, including a summer cutoff moratorium.
In an effort to come to an agreement, the lower house backed off on some of those requests as the session went on. For anyone at 300% or below the federal poverty threshold, a more moderate law that was passed in October would have prohibited reconnection fees and prolonged the duration of payment plans.
Matzie stated, “We’re willing to listen and roll it back.” However, he noted, the campaign for reauthorization sort of fizzled.
If the state House and Senate can agree on a few subjects in the coming year, Matzie thinks action is still feasible. Democratic aims include providing more possibilities for debtors to sign repayment programs and broadening the list of doctors who can sign a medical note requesting a cutoff exemption.
Much of the original law was preserved when the Republican-controlled state Senate enacted its own Chapter 14 reauthorization measure earlier this year. A few business-friendly measures were also included, like reducing the 90-day period that a doctor’s note can help someone prevent a shutoff to 60 days.
The idea was not advanced by the state House.
State Representative Craig Williams (R., Delaware), a former attorney for PECO, an electricity provider in the Philadelphia area, contends that increasing Chapter 14’s rights will result in increased power costs for all.
Williams said, “This is the dirty little secret.” This implies that the utility will be accruing uncollectible debt totaling tens of millions of dollars. Additionally, they will transfer that unpaid debt to you and all of your constituents when it comes time for them to submit their next rate case.
In a statement released on Nov. 24, a representative for the PUC expressed the hope that lawmakers would find a solution.
While waiting for the legislative authorization of Chapter 14 to expire, the Commission intends to do everything within its power to ensure regulatory uniformity.
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