8, even as sewage contamination led to closures for 35 days last year. Please limit your input to 500 characters. The actions are in response to customers who are unable to pay their utility bills during the COVID-19 economic crisis. If you received a shut-off notice from your electric or gas utility, call your utility immediately and ask to enroll in a payment plan. Visit, For more information on community choice electric plans, also known as municipal aggregations, visit this website maintained by the Department of Public Utilities, In addition to your utility, you can contact the Department of Public Utilitiesat877-886-5066, or complete. So, late fees for commercial customers were also prohibited during the emergency. She is borrowing electricity from down the hall to keep her food from spoiling. If you are struggling to pay your electric or gas utility bills, reach out to your utility to discuss available payment plans, arrearage forgiveness programs and other payment assistance programs. "I didn't have the $300 they needed," she said. Murphy was set to sign an executive order Monday that ends the 15-month moratorium on utility shut-offs on July 1, but creates a grace period through Dec. 31 for residents to sign up for a. PSC Chair Rebecca Cameron Valcq highlighted the growing number of COVID-19 cases in Wisconsin. March 17, 2020: CPUC Ensures Essential Utility Services for Consumers to Assist in COVID-19 Mitigation. It appears that sewer and storm utilities are not prohibited from charging late fees and interest (depending on the utilitys rate schedule) for any past-due amounts. You can check outcurrent and historic basic service rates here. 246; https://nj.gov/governor/news/news/562021/approved/20211222a.shtml; https://www.nj.gov/bpu/newsroom/reports/covid19/Moratorium_Ending_FAQs_061421.pdf. The good news: After we confirmed to Fields' provider that she would be getting pandemic aid to pay the bill, the utility agreed to restore her electricity. Last month, Ayanna McClure learned how quickly landlords were filing eviction notices when the moratoriums expired. The Utilities and Transportation Commission also. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. One possibility is that you are participating in your city or towns community choice electric plan. California has been here before, Feds using enhanced surveillance to see whats behind the natural gas spike in California, Paid express lanes grow more popular in once-reluctant South. LIHEAP is available this winter heating season from November 1, 2022 to April 30, 2023. Customers who need payment assistance should contact their utility as soon as possibleto ask about Deferred Payment Agreements (DPAs), and to learn what other assistance is available. Inflation and the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine are driving up fossil fuel prices and in turn energy rates for customers across the country this winter. March 1 2023, Changes for 2022 Annual Reporting for Cash Basis Entities Thursdays 5-0 vote extends the moratorium through the end of September for both residential and small-business customers. All rights reserved. For collection of delinquent amounts by water-sewer districts, the procedures in RCW 57.08.081control. Are we in violation of a law if we do not have a location that is open to the public to serve? If you have been switched without your permission, you should file a complaint with the Department of Public Utilities. If you do not qualify for a low-income program, contact your electric or gas utility to learn about deferred payment arrangements. Plus, if they wish to accelerate or make larger payments, they may do so. It allowed utilities to resume shutoffs on Nov. 9 but the ban was lifted for only three weeks before the annual winter shut-off went into effect on Dec. 1. The good news is that the recent federal COVID-19 relief packages including President Bidens American Rescue Plan enacted in March 2021 provide billions of dollars that can help low-income families struggling to pay their water and sewer bills. Puget Sound Energy reported giving $7.6 million in bill credits to nearly 14,000 customers. March 20, 2020: The CPUC has temporarily waived the hard copy filing requirements for our Advice Letter process. The Biden Administration and Congress have not acted on urgent calls to ban water shutoffs during the COVID-19 pandemic. We offered specific program design recommendations to deliver assistance to those with the greatest need; maximize public health benefits by using program funds to protect access to essential water service; ensure accountability for program spending by states and utilities; and generate data to evaluate the effectiveness of the program and determine how to improve upon it. To be eligible for your electric or gas utilitys low-income discount rate program or the arrearage management program (AMP), you must either qualify for LIHEAP funding, or receive food, cash, or medical benefits from the state. Other CPUC Actions Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) Preparation Plans NEW! The state regulator also approved a plan that requires utilities including San Diego Gas & Electric to automatically enroll customers who are lagging on monthly payments into a two-year debt relief program. Water and other utility services already have been disconnected for at least hundreds of thousands families unable to pay these bills, with more at risk every day. Wolf told commissioners he knew the moratorium couldnt continue indefinitely, but he urged them to continue the protections that are in place for low-income Pennsylvanians. Also ask your electric or gas utility if you qualify for an arrearage forgiveness program or any other payment assistance program. You must re-apply each year and meet the qualifications to receive a HEAP benefit. These LIHEAP funds, combined with assistance from ERAP, will significantly reduce the impact of the lifting of the moratorium, and prevent potentially hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians from facing termination, Wolf said. * Unsurprisingly, when California examined its statewide data, low-income communities of color had disproportionately high levels of household water debt. The bill also extends the time for cities and counties to impose a sewage lien: A sewage lien may exceed six months' delinquent charges without the necessity of any writing or recording if collection of charges was impacted by the declaration of an emergency by the governor. An official website of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, This page, Frequently Asked Questions about Electric and Gas Utilities, is, Frequently Asked Questions about Electric and Gas Utilities. Keep updated on the latest news and information. Some individual water utilities are continuing to suspend shutoffs, even after state bans expire, while some others never do shutoffs at all for non-payment. In these unsettling and unprecedented times, many people are Eligible government agencies can use our free one-on-one inquiry service. Hous. Energy utilities will apply for CAPP assistance on behalf of customers who incurred a past due balance of 60 days or more on their energy bill during the COVID-19 pandemic relief period covering March 4, 2020 through June 15, 2021. If your household income is 60% or less of the state median income, you are eligible for LIHEAP. Do we have to have a location open during this time to accept papers? Electricity and Gas are essential servicesthats why it is important that customers know their rights and where they can go for help if they need it. Commissioners said utility companies may forgive a portion of the debt for low-income customers who stay current on their payments. We want all Massachusetts residents to be aware of thenew and expanded programs available to assist them in paying their home heating bills. The decision means that utilities will not be able to shut off water, power or heat during the winter months. However, the California data do not include arrears for customers of wastewater-only utilities. Also, if a customer enters into a payment plan with their provider, many . Water utilities were asked to submit any disconnection plans for review this month. He also has been a legal policy advisor for the Pierce County Council and has worked in contract administration. In the first quarter of this year, more than 3.3 million residential customers of the states big four utilities have fallen behind on their bills: Applying SDG&Es figure to its overall residential customer total of about 1.326 million, that means 36.6 percent of SDG&E residential customers are in arrears. But since many utilities issue a combined utility bill it may be difficult to separate out services for which it can charge late fees from those it cannot. We know the effects of COVID are still very much front and center for many consumers, Commissioner Clifford Rechtschaffen said. When the remaining state or local moratoria are lifted, residential water customers who lose shutoff protections will face billions of dollars in arrears. June 17, 2020: The CPUC presented its COVID-19 response. Kathy Hochul announced the vast majority of $567 million dedicated to help low-income electric and gas utility customers pay off past utility bills will be reflected on customers' August bills. No, your landlord cannot shut off your utilities. PUC Chair Gladys Brown Dutrieuille said its time to return to the regular collections process.. The Utilities and Transportation Commission also ordered investor-owned utilities to continue waiving new customer deposits and late fees through Oct. 27, 2021. California Public Utilities Commission Additionally, the period in which the lien may be imposed was amended this year by the legislature (see HB 1069, section 15). Steve has worked in municipal law and government for over 20 years as an Assistant City Attorney for Lynnwood, Seattle, Tacoma, and Auburn, and as the City Attorney for Port Townsend and Auburn. . its plants and animals, and the natural systems on which all life depends. Take steps to reduce your overall energy usage this winter, which should in turn help you lower your utility bill. MRSC offers a wide range of services to local governments and our contract partners in Washington State. In the past year, the CPUC and the states utilities stepped up efforts to get eligible customers to sign up for the California Alternate Rates for Energy, or CARE, and the Family Electric Rates Assistance, or FERA programs. If you would like to continue helping us improve Mass.gov, join our user panel to test new features for the site. A recent report by Duke University researchers found that, if utility disconnections had been barred nationwide from March through November 2020, COVID-19 infections rates could have been reduced . Steve Gross Please see below for contact numbers for each investor-owned electric and gas utility. She also noted that the 9,500 customers represented the number of meters that would be shut off, and that more people whoresided in any of those households were also at risk of losing service. "It just makes this problem compounding for the individual, and it's making the utility look like more of a bad guy in my eyes.". The AGO encourages you to contact your electric or gas utility if the recent COVID-19 crisis has significantly impacted your household income because you may be newly eligible for other assistance programs. However, if a customer misses more than two payments in their COVID-19 relief plan, they can be kicked out of the plan. On-Demand Webinars Watch pre-recorded versions of our recent webinars, at your own convenience. Use this button to show and access all levels. But utilities will have to balance their need to maintain their revenue stream with the reality that some of their customers may not have the ability to pay the past-due debt and keep up with current expenses. In such circumstances, a lien may be filed for all charges due during the period covered by the declaration and may be effective for six months after the expiration of the declaration of the emergency. Utilities in Wisconsin will once again be able to shut off services for customers who fail to pay their bills. San Diego Gas & Electric residential customer bills. In California, the reported $1 billion in overdue residential bills includes about $600 million for customers of water utilities or combined water/sewer utilities, and about $400 million for customers who receive a combined bill for water and power from the same utility. Call your electric or gas utility immediately to enroll. Under state law, water utilities can still collect past-due bills by putting those expenses onto the property tax roll. , February 22 2023. Mass.gov is a registered service mark of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Under these programs, your city or town negotiates a supply rate with a competitive supplier for its residents. Water Utilities Will Not Be Able To Disconnect Service After PSC Vote. The electric utilities are responsible for operating their systems, including the decision to conduct a Public Safety Power Shutoff as a last resort.