utilities

Philadelphia Liens and Debt: What You Need to Know Before Acquiring Privately Owned Vacant Lots

This piece from the organization Grounded in Philly provides resources and information for those seeking to gain ownership of a vacant lot that is privately owned and how to deal with unpaid debt left behind by the absent owner. After explaining what liens are, the page moves on to explore the...Read more

Interview Excerpt with Margaret Clark

Margaret: As a homeowner, you got water, taxes, electric, if I need the roof fixed I have to call somebody. You got the whole thing. And I get a water bill every month now. Back in the day, I used to get a water bill once every three months. They'd bill every three months. Not every month like...Read more

State Legislature to investigate ConEd, utility companies’ response to Tropical Storm Isaias

Cuomo has taken the aftermath of the storm very seriously and wants to get at the heart of the poor response from ConEd and other energy providers. ConEd is specifically highlighted, but the article underscores the difference preparedness would have made for the storm's response. Additionally,...Read more

Nearly 35 million households will lose their utility shutoff protections over the next month

With the onset of the pandemic, many states have put moratoriums in place to avoid families being shutoff in the middle of the crisis. However, even with extensions, many of these moratoriums are set to expire by the end of September, which would leave a little less than 35 million people...Read more

Utilities can soon cut off nonpaying customers, Pa. says, but the poorest customers are protected

The Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission (PUC) voted 3-1 to terminate the shutoffs but put safeguards in place to protect the most vulnerable. According to the article, “The PUC’s order will still prohibit utilities from shutting off “protected customers” whose income is no more than...Read more

Utilities Propose First Regional Grid-Balancing Market in Southeastern US

Duke Energy, Dominion, and Southern Company all plan to trade electricity across state, which would make energy costs lower. This plan would also improve reliance on non-carbon-emitting power sources. The article goes into more details about the way energy is distributed across the United States...Read more

IREC’s Clean Energy Consumer Bill of Rights

Based on reactions from the COVID-19 survey, specifically the question regarding energy rights, I was curious to see what the discussion was around them, I was intrigued to find an organization I had never heard of the IREC (Interstate Renewable Energy Council) and their proposed Renewable...Read more

Has COVID-19 changed other weekly/monthly expenses or created new expenses?

It's changed gasoline because I don't have to drive as often, so that's been less. But of course, there's more heat required and more electricity and water usage, so all utilities are going up. Read more

Caught in a patchwork of policies and pledges, some utility customers may still be awaiting electricity restoration or racking up fees

This article reports on the state of disconnections across the United States in March 2020. One of the major points of the article is that, although many states have suspended utility shut-offs during the pandemic (sometimes for an unspecified length of time) there is little data on whether...Read more

Connecticut needs to make big changes in ‘who does what’ in the electric power industry

Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) Chair Gillet said she is not interested in utilities' excuses in not providing reliable service. Eversource has to deal with electricity service and other services it provides, many calling it a monopoly of services. In a 2018 grid-...Read more

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