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Utilities Can't Meet Maryland Accelerated Switching Timeline, Propose Alternatives

April 22, 2014

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Copyright 2010-13 EnergyChoiceMatters.com
Reporting by Karen Abbott • kabbott@energychoicematters.com

Several utilities informed the Maryland PSC that they cannot perform accelerated switches in the manner envisioned by the PSC, and proposed alternatives which would generally achieve the same timeline for returns to SOS, but would not facilitate faster switching from one supplier to another.

The PSC had directed the utilities to effectuate the transfer of service to SOS, or to another supplier, within 3 to 5 business days of receiving notice from the customer, but allowed the utilities to offer alternatives if the PSC's directive was not workable.

Citing system limitations, Baltimore Gas & Electric said that it cannot implement the PSC's directive as envisioned, and offered the following alternative:

• A supplier can initiate a drop for customers with AMI meters by contacting BGE's Choice Programs Unit. The drop will be manually processed within 3 to 5 business days of the supplier's contact.

• After the supplier drop, the customer will initially be placed on SOS or BGE's gas commodity service. The customer can then enroll with a new supplier using the current COMAR processes and timelines.

• Supplier-initiated drops that occur through the existing Commission-approved Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and Extensible Markup Language (XML) protocols for electric and gas respectively, will continue to occur through those automated methods using the existing 12-day drop periods in COMAR.

Similarly, Pepco and Delmarva said that due to system limitation, they cannot implement the PSC's directive as envisioned, and offered the following alternative:

1. Customer initiated drops for all classes of AMI customers will be performed through July 31st 2014 as a "final bill" process (essentially closing one account and opening a new one with the same customer) effective on the business day after the request date.

2. Customers requesting a drop will be required to default back to SOS; if they wish to enroll with another Supplier, the Supplier will initiate the enrollment.

3. Supplier initiated drops and enrollments will occur according to the existing process.

The Pepco utilities noted that current COMAR regulations do not allow a residential customer to return to SOS by contacting the utility (the customer must contact their supplier), and suggested that this rule be changed to allow a utility to perform a cancellation for residential customers.

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