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Advocacy for consumer protections continues as energy policy legislation reaches Ohio House

Residential consumers continue to have a voice in the Ohio legislature during Senate Bill 221 (SB 221) discussions as the Office of the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel (OCC) was once again invited to testify on the legislation – this time before the state’s House of Representatives. Consumers’ Counsel Janine Migden-Ostrander lent the expertise of the OCC to the 21-member House Public Utilities Committee.

In her two presentations to the House in November, Migden-Ostrander re-emphasized the importance of implementing residential consumer protections so large increases in electricity prices may be avoided. In her testimony, Migden-Ostrander outlined a 10-point approach to ensure a sound energy future that ensures consumers of a fair process to decide generation rates and at the lowest cost. The full list of protections the OCC is recommending is as follows:

• Have a side-by-side comparison of all generation pricing options so the lowest cost option is provided to customers;

• A fair process with ample time to prepare is needed for cases that affect consumers;

• Customers should not continue to pay for charges that are scheduled to expire;

• No automatic increases;

• Prevent residential customers from paying extra because of discounts provided to larger energy users;

• A prudence standard so accountability and lowest cost are assured;

• Costs, already paid for, such as those from power plants, should be reflected in any increase in rates;

• Customers who switch electric providers should be able to avoid their original utility’s entire generation rate;

• Any infrastructure modernization should be sought only as part of a full rate case;

• Criteria should be established by the legislature that the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio must consider when deciding whether to increase rates.

OCC contends that with these recommendations incorporated into the proposed energy legislation consumers can be protected and runaway rates can be prevented.

Consumers are encouraged to contact their representative immediately to let them know the importance of adding these consumer protections and safeguards to the state’s energy legislation. A personalized telephone call or letter is the best way to contact your representative. The OCC has developed a sample letter on its Web site, www.pickocc.org, to send to your representative should you not have time to write your own.

To find out who represents your area and his or her telephone number, call 1-800-282-0253. You can mail a letter to your state representative’s attention by using this address:

The Honorable
[fill in the name of your representative]
77 South High Street
Columbus, OH 43215-6111

Consumers can also stay up to date on the OCC’s latest testimony and what the office will advocate for in order to achieve the safeguards consumers deserve by visiting the OCC Web site or calling toll free 1-877-742-5622.

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OCC in your corner

Home energy audits now offered through FirstEnergy

The OCC has worked with FirstEnergy to create programs that will help consumers make better use of energy efficiency in their homes. Now FirstEnergy is offering customers the Home Performance with ENERGY STAR program that can help improve home efficiency through a comprehensive energy audit. Specially trained and certified contractors will diagnose homes using state-of-the-art equipment and recommend improvements and offer financial incentives that will produce the best results. For more information about the program call toll free 1-866-728-3594 or visit www.firstenergyhomeperformance.com .

Duke Energy Ohio customers can also take advantage of audits and other energy efficiency incentive programs. Visit the Duke Web site at www.duke-energy.com for more information.

Rate increase sought by Ohio American Water

Ohio American Water Co. (OAW) has proposed an overall increase in rates of 16.38 percent to the PUCO. A typical monthly residential bill would increase between 12 percent and 38 percent, depending on the system that serves the customer.

According to the company, the reasons for the increases include continued infrastructure improvements that improve capacity, reliability and water quality, additional personnel, increases in wages, insurance and benefits, and increases in operational costs.

The OCC has intervened in the case and intends to determine if any of the OAW requests are justified and reasonable. The OCC will also investigate to see if services can be enhanced to benefit residential consumers. Public hearings will be scheduled by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio to give consumers the opportunity to voice their opinions regarding this rate increase request.

The last OAW rate increase went into effect in March 2007, increasing water rates 14 percent for customers in Franklin and Portage counties and 11.7 percent for all other residential customers. Ohio American Water also increased several customer charges including those related to account activation and reconnection.

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Revised telephone rules go into effect

Based on some changes made in 2007 by state regulators, Ohio’s modified Minimum Telephone Service Standards went into effect January 1, 2008, except for rules dealing with disconnection for nonpayment which go into effect June 1. Residential consumers had important telephone service safeguards maintained but others were scaled back by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO). The Office of the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel (OCC), as part of a coalition of consumer organizations and local governments, tried to keep – and in some cases strengthen – the rules.

While many of the important rules were maintained, the modified rules do not entitle customers to any credits for outages unless they last for 72 hours or more. The OCC believes customers should not be required to pay for service they do not receive. The revision also takes away any incentive for companies to have outages repaired within 24 hours.

Important protections that remain in effect include maintaining the ability for consumers with medical conditions to be placed on a priority repair list. The new rules also continue to prohibit most telephone companies from disconnecting customers’ basic local service if they have paid that portion of the bill. Under the new rules, however, beginning June 1 those customers may receive their only notice as a bill message instead of through a separately mailed disconnect notice.

The new rules also raise the maximum fee that may be charged to consumers making payments at an authorized agent. Consumers who make payments at authorized agents may now be charged as much as $2. This is an increase from the level allowed in the old rules, in which the fee could not be greater than twice the cost of a first-class postage stamp (currently 82 cents). During the recent rule review, the PUCO’s staff recommended that agents be allowed to charge customers $5 or more to process their payments. The OCC argued the increased charge would have had a huge financial impact on a portion of telephone consumers who have lower or fixed incomes and who do not have credit cards or checking accounts.

The new rules also do not ensure that telephone company representatives will meet a customer’s needs before marketing services. Prior to the revisions, customer service representatives were required to address an incoming caller’s concerns before marketing services or features. Now, the rules allow companies to immediately begin marketing services unless customers are calling with service problems or to make payment arrangements.

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Rumors about national Do-Not-Call list can confuse consumers

Expiring registrations

Some consumers have read that they need to renew their registration in the national Do-Not-Call list, which began in June 2003. While some reports indicated that registrations would begin to expire in mid-2007, all registrations are good for five years from the date of registration. So, registrations are good at least until mid-2008, although consumers may renew their registrations any time.

The federal government is considering whether to make Do-Not-Call registrations permanent so consumers would never have to renew so long as they keep the same telephone numbers. Consumers can write their member of Congress or to the Federal Comunications Commission (www.fcc.gov) to express their support. Meanwhile, the Federal Trade Commission has said it will not drop any telephone numbers from the list due to the five-year expiration until a final decision is made regarding permanent registration.

Consumers can verify when their telephone numbers were added by visiting www.donotcall.gov or calling 1-888-382-1222 from the registered telephone number. If consumers renew their registration early, they will be on the Do-Not-Call list for five years from the date of renewal.

While more than 145 million telephone numbers have been registered to the national Do-Not-Call list, residential consumers who have never registered may sign up at any time using the above Web site and telephone number.

Cellular telephones

Warnings have been sent out to consumers stating that if they do not add their cellular telephone number to the national Do-Not-Call list, it will be sold to telemarketers or placed in a national wireless directory. These warnings are false. According to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and other sources, it is illegal for telemarketers to place calls to cellular phones unless a customer has an established business relationship.

Since most telemarketing calls to a cellular phone are illegal, adding a cellular phone number to the national Do-Not-Call list should be unnecessary. However, consumers may add their personal cellular phone numbers to this list, as an added protection.

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Q&A: Telephone Lifeline programs help start and maintain service

Q. What is Lifeline?

A. The Lifeline programs allow income- eligible consumers to stay connected or be reconnected to telephone service at discounted rates, which varies depending on the company. Consumers will not have to pay a deposit or installation charges.

Q. What are the eligibility requirements?

A. Consumers are eligible if their household income is at or below 150 percent of the federal poverty guideline, which currently for a family of four is $30,975 a year. Another way that households can be eligible is if they receive assistance through Medicaid, food stamps, Supplemental Security Income, Section 8 housing, the Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) or Emergency HEAP, National School Lunch Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Social Security Disability Income and disability assistance. Households are not automatically eligible based on income from Social Security or Medicare which are age-based programs, not income-based.

Q. What documentation is necessary?

A. All consumers enrolling based on income must submit documentation that shows proof of income. Examples of acceptable documentation include: a prior year’s state or federal income tax return, a current income statement from an employer or W-2 form, three consecutive months or current pay stubs, statement of benefits from Social Security, statement of benefits from the Veteran’s Administration, statement of benefits from a retirement or pension fund, statement of benefits from unemployment or workmen’s compensation, divorce decree or child support documentation.

Consumers who qualify based on one of the participating assistance programs do not need to provide proof of income. Additionally, all telephone companies must perform random audits of their current Lifeline customers to ensure that the customer continues to meet the eligibility requirements of the program.

The Office of the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel (OCC) offers additional information and can provide Lifeline applications, and answer eligibility questions by calling toll free at 1-877-742-5622. Consumers also may visit online at www.pickocc.org.

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