Utility Modifies Proposal For New Customer Referral Program, Removing Random Assignment

Columbia Gas of Ohio has modified proposed tariff revisions that would implement day-one choice service with what originally would have also served as a form of customer referral program, but which now omits a random referral process and would only allow customers selecting a specific retail supplier to take choice service immediately

As exclusively reported by EnergyChoiceMatters.com in December (see details here), Columbia Gas had filed tariff revisions to implement an Immediate CHOICE Enrollment Program, under which CHOICE-eligible customers, with the exception of those currently enrolled in the CHOICE Program, were to be provided an opportunity to take CHOICE service immediately upon service connection (no need to take default service) via a randomly selected or customer-selected supplier. It was understood that the Immediate CHOICE Enrollment Program would only be offered to new service requests

Under the originally proposed Immediate CHOICE Enrollment Program, participating customers could either have chosen a specific supplier, or could have elected to be randomly assigned to a supplier, that would provide service for two billing cycles that starts with the provision of gas service at the new address. Customers would have been required to affirmatively contract with the supplier at the end of the two billing cycles to continue with the supplier.

The rate billed to customers participating during the two billing cycle introductory period of the Immediate CHOICE Enrollment Program is to be equivalent to the effective Standard Choice Offer (SCO) billing rate.

However, Columbia Gas has filed a modification to its proposal to remove the ability of customers electing to participate in the Immediate CHOICE Enrollment Program to elect to be randomly assigned to a supplier. Instead, all participants in the Immediate CHOICE Enrollment Program must affirmatively select a supplier in order to participate in the program.

It was unclear how the program would be presented to customers and if customers interested in day one choice service would be provided a list of suppliers to facilitate the selection of a specific supplier, or, with the elimination of the option for random assignment, the program would no longer be presented to "blind" customers initiating new service, and essentially only operate on an as-requested basis by customers who have already selected a supplier and affirmatively reach out to Columbia for their switch to occur on day one of new service.

Other than eliminating the option for random assignment, Columbia has not modified any terms of its earlier proposal

Case No. 16-2430-GA-ATA