Regulator Weighs Requiring Retail Supplier Summary Information (Next Month's Rate, Termination Fee Info) On Business Customer Bills

The Connecticut PURA issued a draft order that would re-open proceeding Docket 14-07-19 to consider whether summary information required to be listed on residential customer bills should apply to business customer bills.

Currently, only residential bills are required to list the following summary information : (1) the electric generation service rate; (2) the term and expiration date of such rate; (3) any change to such rate effective the next billing cycle; (4) the cancellation fee, if applicable, provided there is such a change; (5) notification that such rate is variable, if applicable; (6) the standard service rate; (7) the term and expiration date of the standard service rate; (8) the dollar amount that would have been billed for the electric generation services component had the customer been receiving standard service; and (9) an electronic link or Internet website address to the PURA rate board, and the toll-free telephone number and other information necessary to enable a customer to obtain standard service.

Retail suppliers must provide information to EDCs to populate utility consolidated bills. Retail suppliers are responsible for including the information on their own bills.

PURA's draft order to re-open the proceeding notes that, "Displaying the Generation Supply Summary has proven beneficial for residential customers."

"Although Conn. Gen. Stat. §16-245d(2) does not require the summary information on business customers’ bills, the Authority will examine whether these customers would equally benefit from the Generation Supply Summary information. The Authority also intends to explore how the EDCs display this information on their websites showing a customer’s account summary, pursuant to the same statute," the draft states

The draft would reopen Docket 14-07-19 for the limited purpose of expanding the summary information requirement to business electric bills and to examine how the summary information is delivered to customers via the EDCs’ websites.