|
|
|
PETITION OF TEXAS RATEPAYERS' |
§ |
PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSION |
|
EXTREME AND PERSISTENT HEAT |
§ |
OF TEXAS |
Petition of Texas Ratepayers' Organization
to Save Energy and
Texas Legal Services Center
to Adopt An Emergency Rule
To Suspend Disconnection Of Electricity
Because of Extreme and Persistent Heat
TO THE HONORABLE PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSION OF
TEXAS:
As of July 25, 2000, 32 Texans have died due to
heat stroke or other heat related conditions. The Texas Department of
Health Division of Emergency Preparedness foresees no significant
break in the extreme and persistent summer heat, considers the heat
an emergency, and is operating in a crisis
mode.(1)
President Clinton directed the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services to issue $41.75 million in Low-Income Home Energy Assistance
Program (LIHEAP) emergency funds. Texas will receive $14.4 million to
supply air conditioners and assist low-income customers in the
payment of high summer bills. Texas is experiencing a heat emergency
and we are asking the commission to adopt an emergency rule as it did
in 1998 to suspend disconnection of electricity through September 30,
2000 to save lives and protect the public health and
safety.(2)
Our petition requests that utilities be ordered
to maintain service for a customer when a minimum payment is
received. The minimum payment shall be established through a deferred
payment plan in an amount agreed to by the customer and the
utility.
Summer Temperatures Pose a Health Risk
Texas Department of Health guidelines for
preventing hot weather illness advise people to stay in
air-conditioned areas. "If no air conditioning is available fans are
helpful. However, health experts advise that if heat and humidity
create a heat stress index level of 100° F or higher, fans may
not cool, but instead act as heaters in enclosed areas. If you must
use a fan when the humidity is high, you should aim the fan through a
window to blow hot air out."(3)
A 100° F heat index can occur at temperatures as low as 88°
F. (4)
The PUC Extreme Heat Standard Provides
Little Protection for Vulnerable Consumers
The current PUC rules prohibit disconnection on
days when the National Weather Service (NWS) issues a heat
advisory.(5)
A NWS heat advisory is issued when the heat is expected to have a
significant impact on public safety. "A common guideline for the
issuance of excessive heat alerts is when the maximum daytime heat
index is 105° F and a nighttime heat index of 80° F or
above for two or more consecutive days."
(6)
During hot Texas summers, electricity use and
electricity bills rise. During an extended heat wave they can become
too high for many consumers to pay. When payments are past due the
threat of disconnection looms. For many consumers, the only option is
doing without even if it risks their health and safety. In the
meantime, the revenue and profits from sales of electricity soar.
Payment Options are Limited for Many
Consumers
Equal monthly payments are convenient for
consumers on a fixed budget. However, the PUC's rules encourage, but
do not require, an electric utility to offer level and average
payment plans.(7)
Furthermore, the electric utility may require a deposit from a
customer participating in a level billing
plan.(8)
Because they are offered at the utility's option it is erroneous to
assume that all customers have access to level billing plans. In
addition, a security deposit makes level billing plans out of reach
for consumers who are unable to afford the deposit.|
A deferred payment plan is a written agreement
that allows the customer to pay an outstanding bill in installments
beyond the due date of the next bill. Under PUC rules, a utility must
offer a deferred payment plan to any customer who expresses an
inability to pay.(9)
However, if a customer has been issued more than two disconnect
notices in the preceding 12 months the utility does not have to offer
the deferred payment plan.(10)
Once again, consumers in need of special payment arrangements to
prevent disconnection can be readily denied a deferred payment plan
if they have had payment problems in the past year.
We are seeking a solution for customers likely
to be disconnected because they cannot afford to pay the entire
amount of the bill and for customers who may need extra time to pay
off high bills caused by the heat wave. The PUC's customer protection
rules address level and average payment plans and deferred payment
plans for some residential customers. The consumers with the lowest
ability to absorb the cost of skyrocketing electric bills have only
one available payment option - all or nothing.
The Emergency Rule Provides Essential
Payment Options to Protect At-Risk Consumers
The emergency rule we propose will assure that
everyone has deferred payment options available to establish a
minimum payment requirement prior to notice of disconnection. Before
issuing a disconnection notice the electric utility must personally
contact the customer and offer to establish a minimum payment
schedule and a deferred payment plan. This rule will assure that all
residential customers have the ability to access electricity for air
conditioning when the heat index exceeds 100° F. No one in Texas
should die for fear that running the air conditioner will mean they
won't be able to afford to pay their next electric bill and will have
to live without electricity for the refrigerator, fans and
lights.
The current weather situation is similar to
that experienced in 1998. We petition the commission to adopt an
emergency rule similar to that adopted in 1998. Under the emergency
rule in Attachment 1:
· Utilities must suspend all disconnection of residential customers from August 10, through September 30, 2000 until the customer is offered a minimum payment requirement and a six to twelve month deferred payment plan.
· A customer can only be disconnected for failing to make a minimum payment.
· Any customer must automatically be offered six months to pay off delinquent bills and at the customer's request must be given up to twelve months to pay.
· Utilities cannot charge a late payment or penalty if the installments are paid on time or require a security deposit.
Conclusion
With no break in the heat in sight, the current
rule fails to protect low-income and residential consumers from
exposure to dangerous heat. A short break in the triple digit heat
index could trigger disconnection leaving the customer without
electricity when the heat index rises again. Furthermore, customers
that do not have access to level payment plans and customers with
poor payment histories could be left with no option except to live
without electricity and risk their health and safety.
The granting of our Petition is necessary to
prevent heat-related deaths that could be avoided with access to air
conditioning and fans dependent on electricity for operation. On
behalf of low-income Texans and residential utility customers we urge
the commission to protect the public health and safety through the
granting of this Petition at its August 10, 2000 open meeting.
Respectfully submitted: Texas Ratepayers' Organization Texas Legal Services Center
To Save Energy
By: Carol Biedrzycki By: Randall Chapman
Executive Director
815 Brazos St., Suite 1100
Austin, TX 78701-2509
Phone: (512) 472-5233
Fax: (512) 472-5310
State Bar No. 04129800
815 Brazos St., Suite 1100
Austin, TX 78701-2509
Phone: (512) 477-6000
Fax: (512) 477-6576
_________
Footnotes:
(1) Mr. Sam Wilson, Texas Department of Health, Emergency Management, July 26, 2000.
(2) U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, HHS News, July 25. 2000.
(3) Sweating out a Texas heat wave, A guide to preventing hot weather illness, Division of Emergency Preparedness, Texas Department of Health.
(4) NWS information makes an important note. "Since heat index values were devised for shady, light wind conditions, exposure to full sunshine can increase heat index values by up to 15° F. Also, strong winds, particularly with very hot, dry air, can be extremely hazardous." Summary of NWS's Alert Procedures, http://weather.noaa.gov/weather/hwave.html, p. 3.
(5) Section 25.29(i((2)
(6) Summary of NWS's Alert Procedures, http://weather.noaa.gov/weather/hwave.html, p. 3.
(7) PUC Subst. R. §25.28(g).
(8) PUC Subst. R. §25.28(g)(3).
(9) Subst. R. §25.28(i)(1).
(10) Ibid.
Consumers Union's Southwest Regional Office
