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AG Seeks To Include Default Service Rate on Retail Supplier Disclosure Labels

June 30, 2015

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Copyright 2010-15 EnergyChoiceMatters.com
Reporting by Karen Abbott • kabbott@energychoicematters.com

The Massachusetts Attorney General has submitted a proposed disclosure label to the DPU for use by retail electric suppliers, and the label notably would require retail suppliers to list default service rates on their disclosure labels.

Click here for a sample of the AG's disclosure label.

Specifically, the AG would require the label to include, "current, future (if known), and recent historical fixed basic service rates available to the customer’s class from his or her electric distribution company."

"The Attorney General’s Office proposes providing two years of fixed basic service rates, inclusive of the current rate and the future rate (if known). Thus, if the future fixed basic service rate is 'unknown,' as is the case in the example provided by the Attorney General’s Office’s Proposed Information Disclosure Label, the nested table will have five rows: one that simply notes the future rate is unknown, another that lists the current rate, and three more that list the previous three rates. Where the future rate is known, the table would have four rows: one for the future rate, one for the current rate, and two more that list the previous two rates. Accordingly, irrespective of the timing of when the supplier issues the disclosure label, the customer will have access to two years of fixed basic service rates," the AG said

"Disclosure of basic service rate information is critical from a consumer protection perspective. During the recent price spikes over the past two winters, the Attorney General’s Office has received reports of agents of competitive suppliers misrepresenting basic service prices. Most commonly, these agents represent that the high winter rates will 'continue to go up,' even though it is common knowledge in the Massachusetts electricity industry that rates are not expected to “go up” in the summer but drop significantly. This type of deception is likely to go undetected unless the customer proactively tracks basic service prices because the customer’s basic service rate is not provided on the bill or otherwise provided to the customer. Accordingly, providing basic service rate information in the Information Disclosure Label would help customers who have been misled by these tactics and discourage competitive suppliers from engaging in them. Moreover, because the Attorney General’s Office proposes providing a total of two years of basic service rates, the consumer will have all the tools that he or she needs to make an 'apples-to-apples' comparison between basic service and his or her competitive supply rate," the AG said.

D.P.U. 14-140

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