New Hampshire PUC Staff, OCA Seek Proceeding on Retail Supplier Marketing, Licensing Rules

Staff of the New Hampshire PUC and the Office of Consumer Advocate have petitioned the PUC to open a rulemaking to review the applicable codes addressing retail electric supplier licensing and marketing rules.

Staff and OCA recommended the action in light of the recent mass transition of PNE Energy Supply's customers to default service, the associated dispute concerning the effectiveness of aggregation agreements with such customers, and press reports of deceptive marketing practices by various suppliers, including allegations of agents impersonating utility workers and misrepresenting rate information.

Specifically, Staff and OCA sought revisions to the following:

• Puc 2003.01 and Puc 2006.01 to consider modifying the registration application to require, among other things, written notice to the OCA and the Commission when a CEPS begins serving residential customers;

• Puc 2004 relative to those actions which would end an aggregation agreement between an aggregator and a residential customer;

• Puc 2004 relative to customer notice when an aggregator is acting as an agent for a CEPS;

• Puc 2004 relative to amending the notification process to be followed if a CEPS defaults at ISO-NE or is otherwise unable to fulfill its contractual obligations to customers;

• Puc 2003 and Puc 2004 relative to penalties for unauthorized solicitation practices;

• Puc 2004.05. Puc 2004.10 and Puc 2005 relative to considering amendments regarding remedies for residential customers transferred to another supplier without authorization when the transfer is due to mistake, Electronic Data Interface (EDI) malfunction, or other unintentional miscommunication;

• Puc 2004.05 to clarify distribution utility responsibilities when responding to CEPS EDI requests to switch multiple residential accounts from one supplier to another; and

• Puc 2005 to consider amending the enforcement provisions and procedures.

Staff and the OCA also recommended the rulemaking include a review of the Commission's authority over aggregators pursuant to RSA 374-F, specifically 374-F:2 and 374-F:7 as it relates to the establishment of consumer protections as well as fines or other sanctions for violations of the Commission's rules.

A letter from Staff and OCA concerning the recommendations has been docketed as DRM 13-151, but no formal opening of a proceeding from the Commission yet appears online.