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Press
Release Contact:
November 28, 2000
Janee Briesemeister, (512) 477-4431, ext. 117;
Carol Biedrzycki, Texas ROSE (512) 472-5233
Consumers
Union West Southwest Regional Office
Today's action by the Railroad Commission
is in response to a petition filed last month
by consumer advocacy organizations
AUSTIN, TX - Consumer advocates today applauded
an emergency rule adopted by the Texas Railroad Commission limiting a
utility provider's right to disconnect gas utility service during the
cold winter months as a significant improvement over the commission's
current rules. However, the rule does not go as far as advocates
requested in providing alternative payment plans for consumers hard
hit by the steep rise in natural gas prices.
"We are pleased to see that the emergency rule
will improve the situation for consumers facing disconnection this
winter," said Janee Briesemeister, a senior policy analyst with the
Southwest Regional Office of Consumers Union. Natural gas prices are
on the rise, which combined with the recent cold snap, will result in
consumers seeing gas heating bills that are significantly higher than
last winter.
"No one in Texas should jeopardize health and
safety for fear that running the heater will mean they won't be able
to afford to pay their next gas utility bill, Briesemeister
said."
"The jurisdiction of the Railroad Commission is
limited to private gas utilities serving unincorporated areas of the
state, which causes a problem with effective consumer protection,"
she added. "Our organizations urge the state's gas utilities to give
all of their customers, regardless of where they live, the same
protection against disconnection due to high heating bills."
In addition, Commissioner Tony Garza today also
urged cities to follow the Railroad Commission's lead and adopt
similar rules.
The organizations are disappointed that the
rules make the offering of deferred payment plans optional for gas
utility providers. Deferred payment plans provide a way for consumers
to pay down overdue bills over several months. Often, consumers on
limited or fixed incomes simply do not have the funds to pay
unexpectedly high heating bills, but are willing and able to make
arrangements to pay over several months and avoid disconnection.
"The emergency rule as it stands will prevent
people from being disconnected when it is colder than normal. That's
good," said Carol Biedrzycki, Executive Director of the Texas
Ratepayers' Organization to Save Energy. "The down side is that the
weather emergency can be followed by good weather when the customer
can be disconnected only to be followed by another cold snap where
temperatures are dangerously cold. It only takes one cold night to
die of hypothermia or have a house fire due to an unsafe heater."
Current rules allow gas utilities to disconnect
service during any weather, unless a physician files a statement
saying the consumer' health will be in danger. Utilities are
currently encouraged, but not required, to offer payment options to
consumers who fall behind on their bills.
Under the rule passed today:
· Providers (which includes managers of master metered systems) may not disconnect a customer on a day when the previous day's temperature in the county where the customer takes service falls below 40 degrees Fahrenheit and the National Weather Service predicts that the temperature in that county will fall below that level during the next 24 hours.· Providers may not disconnect service to a delinquent residential customer for a billing period in which the provider receives a pledge, letter of intent, purchase order, or other notification from an energy assistance provider that it is forwarding sufficient payment to continue service.
· Providers may not disconnect service to a delinquent residential customer on a day, or on a day immediately preceding a day, when personnel of the provider are not available for the purpose of receiving payment or making collections and reconnecting service.
· Providers are encouraged to offer consumers deferred payment or level payment plans.
The emergency rule is the result of a petition
filed in October by four consumer advocacy organizations urging the
Railroad Commission of Texas to take a more aggressive stance in
protecting consumers against winter disconnection of home heating
services. The petition, filed by Consumers Union, Texas Ratepayers'
Organization to Save Energy, Texas Legal Services and the AARP,
differed from the rule passed today in that it would have prohibited
all involuntary disconnection of residential gas service during the
winter months and required utilities to offer deferred payment plans
to consumers who could not pay current heating bills due to higher
than expected gas prices.
