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Pennsylvania Approves PECO's Multiple Bills Per Month Solution to Accelerated Switching, Grants Waivers to Other EDCs

December 5, 2014

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Copyright 2010-14 EnergyChoiceMatters.com
Reporting by Karen Abbott • kabbott@energychoicematters.com

The Pennsylvania PUC has approved PECO's compliance plan to implement accelerated switching, under which electric customers are to be switched to their chosen EGS within three business days, which includes issuing a new bill to the customer when the customer switches in the middle of a billing cycle.

PECO was unique among the EDCs in proposing that it issue a new bill to the customer for each supplier switch ("Bill on Supplier Switch," or "BOSS.")

If a customer switches between meter read dates, the BOSS approach could result in bills covering only a few days of service within the overall monthly billing period. The Commission's regulations, however, require that bills be issued for a period of not less than 26 days.

PECO accordingly asked for a waiver of the billing regulations to implement its accelerated switching solution, and the PUC generally granted the request.

PECO's proposal met the most resistance from retail suppliers among the EDCs' accelerated switching compliance plans, as suppliers raised concerns about customer confusion from multiple bills per month.

While the PUC, "shares the concerns of OCA and RESA that having multiple bills and payment due dates during a billing period has the potential to cause some customer confusion and could result in payment problems for customers," it ultimately found that, "any impact on customers arising from the BOSS billing process is mere conjecture at this time."

The PUC did direct PECO to monitor the results of its BOSS bill operations to determine if significant customer confusion or payment difficulties result, and to file various reports on the program.

The PUC also directed PECO to continue to investigate the potential for reflecting multiple switches on a single monthly bill

The PUC limited the granting of a waiver of the billing regulations to the period December 15, 2014 through December 31, 2016

The other major EDCs did not propose a solution which would result in multiple bills per month, but, due to billing system limitations, proposed that the accelerated switching generally be limited to one accelerated switch per billing cycle (via off-cycle switch), with subsequent switches in the same cycle not subject to the new 3-day switching timeline.

The PUC generally granted associated waivers sought by PPL, Duquesne Light, and the FirstEnergy EDCs.

Specific details of how each utility will implement accelerated switching was discussed in our prior stories, at the links below:

PPL

Duquesne Light

FirstEnergy EDCs

At Duquesne Light, since the PUC granted waivers to implement Duquesne Light's preferred solution of one accelerated switch per billing cycle, the PUC did not approve Duquesne Light's proposal for a "backup" solution that would have limited accelerated switches to returns to default service.

Also notable is that the FirstEnergy EDCs' waiver request was limited to the period through June 15, 2015, rather than December 31, 2015, though the companies may later petition for an extension.

The PUC dismissed certain cancers of retail suppliers regarding an accelerated switching model where all switches are processed as off-cycle switches.

"[W]hile we recognize that current EGS contract language may set a contractual end date as the regularly scheduled meter read date, we note that such language was consistent with the previous switching rule paradigm that allowed for switching at the next feasible meter read date. That paradigm no longer exists, and it is incumbent on suppliers to adapt to the new accelerated switching paradigm," the PUC said.

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