RI Lt. Gov., AG Seek Elimination of Default Service Bill Recalculation

Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Kilmartin and Lt. Governor Daniel McKee will hold a press conference today to call for, "greater transparency and fair competition in the competitive electricity market" and the elimination of the National Grid default service bill recalculation applicable when the customer leaves default service for competitive supply.

The default service bill recalculation retroactively applies monthly basic service rates to the customer's prior usage (instead of the fixed rate the customer had been paying). This can result in a charge or credit to the customer based on basic service pricing.

Speaking at the press conference will be a small business owner that was charged $1,845 by National Grid after switching to a different electricity supplier offering lower rates.

"With skyrocketing electricity rates this year, many residential customers and businesses are switching to electricity suppliers offering significantly lower rates than National Grid only to discover they are required to pay a 'billing adjustment,' which is the bill recalculation to cover the difference between the default fixed-rate basic service and a variable rate," the AG and Lt. Gov. offices said in a press announcement

Kilmartin and McKee have intervened in National Grid's Energy Procurement case now pending before the Public Utilities Commission to request the termination of the "billing adjustment" practice and mandate greater transparency and clearer notification on National Grid billing materials and unregulated energy suppliers' marketing materials.