Dive Brief:
- The Connecticut House of Representatives voted unanimously to allow new consumer protection laws designed to prevent retail electricity providers from luring customers with artificially attractive rates away from the state's two default suppliers, Connecticut Light and Power and United Illuminating. The bill passed the Senate last week and now heads to Governor Dannel P. Malloy's desk for his signature.
- Under the legislation, the state's Public Utility Commission will impose a new billing format from July 1, 2015 that forces retail electricity supply companies to accurately compare their rates with those of the default suppliers. The bill also forces competitive suppliers to disclose the length of the customer's contract, the company's cancelation policy, and detail any changes in rate scheduled to occur during the next billing cycle.
- The bill forbids retail suppliers from raising their rates during the first three billing cycles from July 1 of this year onward, as well as applying cancelation or other fees to customers who move to a different location within the state but don't change their supplier.
Dive Insight:
The legislation comes after accusations that Connecticut's retail suppliers are tempting customers away from the default utilities with attractive rates that quickly become far more costly than the default utility's. By forcing retailers to be more transparent about their rates, legislators say consumers will be able to make more informed choices.
But consumer advocacy groups worry the reforms don't go far enough, arguing that aggressive and opaque marketing may be curbed, but putting a cap on the fees and rates charged by retail suppliers would ensure consumers are treated fairly.