SB 780

Under this bill, the Public Service Commission administers a percentage of income payment program that requires PSC to ensure that the monthly cost of electricity and gas utility service for a severely energy burdened household or energy burdened household does not exceed 2 percent of the annual income of the household divided by 12. The bill authorizes PSC to approve rates for electricity and gas utility service that are based on a customer’s household income, and the bill also authorizes the PSC to provide financial assistance to satisfy the requirement described above. The bill defines a “severely energy burdened household” as a household for which the monthly electricity and gas bills equal 4 percent or more of the total annual income of the household divided by 12 or a household that has no annual income and includes a customer who pays electricity or gas bills. Also, under the bill, an “energy burdened household” is a household for which the monthly electricity and gas bills equal at least 2 percent and less than 4 percent of the total annual income of the household divided by 12.

PSC must automatically enroll all severely energy burdened households and energy burdened households in the percentage of income payment program. PSC must engage in active outreach about participating in the program to communities that historically have had a relatively high proportion of severely energy burdened households. Under the bill, PSC may limit the applicability of rates or financial assistance under the percentage of income payment program to electric and gas service for a primary residence. The bill also requires PSC to submit an annual report on the program to the governor and the legislature.

The bill also prohibits public utilities from disconnecting for nonpayment electricity or gas service from a residential dwelling unit whose gross annual income does not exceed 300 percent of the federal poverty guidelines of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Also, the bill requires each electricity or gas public utility to annually report to PSC on all service disconnections from a residential dwelling unit made during the previous year. PSC must submit a report summarizing those reports to the governor and the legislature, and PSC must publish on its website all reports received from public utilities. The bill also allows a customer whose residential dwelling unit is wrongly disconnected from electricity or gas service by a public utility to petition PSC to require the public utility to reconnect the service. PSC must decide on a petition no later that 30 days after receiving it, and if PSC requires a public utility to reconnect service, the public utility must reconnect the service within three days.

The bill establishes an energy burden relief segregated fund for PSC for the percentage of income payment program. Under the bill, all moneys received from the gross revenues tax on public utilities are deposited in the energy burden relief fund.