Governor Mills Signs Bills to Strengthen Oversight, Improve Transparency in Electric Utility Company Billing Practices

Governor Janet Mills announced today that she has signed two bills into law to improve transparency in customer billing practices and strengthen public oversight of transmission and distribution utilities. 

“Maine people and businesses should be able to count on clear, accurate, and reliable electric bills from transmission and distribution utilities,” said Governor Mills. “These important pieces of legislation – which are now law – take important steps to ensure that utility providers provide their customers with critical information, engage in transparent and fair practices, and are held accountable by the Public Utilities Commission. I applaud Representatives Berry and Riseman for leading on this issue.”

LD 1003 "An Act To Ensure Accurate Explanations of Electric Bills", sponsored by Representative Seth Berry of Bowdoinham, directs the PUC to adopt rules to require:

  • investor-owned transmission and distribution utilities to provide a 10-year history of transmission, service rates, and a statement of the total percentage change in rates over the ten-year period to customers every year;
  • customer bills to clearly and prominently display the PUC’s consumer assistance and safety division toll-free telephone number and a list of services available by calling the division;
  • a process for the commission, upon finding that an investor-owned transmission and distribution utility has distributed information to customers that is misleading, deceptive or inaccurate, to require the transmission and distribution utility to provide customers a statement that corrects the information and;
  • the commission to post the 10-year history of electricity rate components on the commission's website.

“LD 1003 addresses concerns that arose from CMP's representations to customers of their recent rate increases and ongoing billing and metering problems,” said Representative Seth Berry. “While it does not solve the more fundamental underlying challenges, LD 1003 will at least help ensure that utilities cannot misrepresent their regulated rates without some measure of accountability."

LD 581 "An Act To Direct Electric Utilities To Provide Comparative Usage Data on Customer Billing Statements", sponsored by Representative Walter Riseman of Harrison, requires a transmission and distribution utility to provide information on customer utility billing statements concerning the previous 24 months of the customer's energy usage comparing same-month usage data between the first year of usage and the second year of usage.

“This bill is a huge win for Maine electric consumers,” said Representative Riseman. “It requires major electric utilities to give consumers the tools to compare their electric consumption to last year's usage.”

Upon Governor Mills’ signature, both laws will now take effect 90 days after the adjournment of the Legislature.

In addition to the two bills above, Governor Mills has also signed the following into law: