PRINTER'S NO. 718
No. 662 Session of 1999
INTRODUCED BY SCHWARTZ, COSTA, MUSTO, WAGNER, MELLOW AND BODACK, MARCH 24, 1999
REFERRED TO CONSUMER PROTECTION AND PROFESSIONAL LICENSURE, MARCH 24, 1999
AN ACT 1 Amending Title 66 (Public Utilities) of the Pennsylvania 2 Consolidated Statutes, further providing for declaration of 3 policy, for definitions and for duties of electric 4 distribution companies. 5 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania 6 hereby enacts as follows: 7 Section 1. Section 2802 of Title 66 of the Pennsylvania 8 Consolidated Statutes is amended by adding a paragraph to read: 9 § 2802. Declaration of policy. 10 The General Assembly finds and declares as follows: 11 * * * 12 (22) Consumers of electricity must have access to 13 uniform and reliable information about the price and 14 environmental characteristics of their electric purchases in 15 order to make intelligent choices and further the development 16 of a competitive market. 17 Section 2. The definition of "renewable resource" in section 18 2803 of Title 66 is amended and the section is amended by adding
1 definitions to read: 2 § 2803. Definitions. 3 The following words and phrases when used in this chapter 4 shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the 5 context clearly indicates otherwise: 6 * * * 7 "Emissions characteristics." The types of measurable fuels, 8 air emissions and other types of pollutants, radioactive, solid 9 and liquid, created from the generation of electrical power, 10 including, but not limited to, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide 11 and carbon dioxide, for the previous six months. 12 * * * 13 "Reference level." The State average emissions per kilowatt 14 hour of a selected pollutant. 15 * * * 16 "Renewable energy." Electricity from any of the following 17 resources: biomass, including landfill gas, agricultural and 18 other waste fuels, geothermal, small hydroelectric no greater 19 than 30 megawatts, solar, wind and ocean-based facilities. 20 ["Renewable resource." Includes technologies such as solar 21 photovoltaic energy, solar thermal energy, wind power, low-head 22 hydropower, geothermal energy, landfill and mine-based methane 23 gas, energy from waste and sustainable biomass energy.] 24 "Resource mix." A listing of the types of energy resources 25 used in generating electricity for the previous six months. 26 * * * 27 Section 3. Section 2807(d)(2) of Title 66 is amended and the 28 subsection is amended by adding a paragraph to read: 29 § 2807. Duties of electric distribution companies. 30 * * * 19990S0662B0718 - 2 -
1 (d) Consumer protections and customer service.--The electric 2 distribution company shall continue to provide customer service 3 functions consistent with the regulations of the commission, 4 including meter reading, complaint resolution and collections. 5 Customer services shall, at a minimum, be maintained at the same 6 level of quality under retail competition. 7 * * * 8 (2) The commission shall establish regulations to 9 require each electric distribution company, electricity 10 supplier, marketer, aggregator and broker to provide adequate 11 and accurate customer information to enable customers to make 12 informed choices regarding the purchase of all electricity 13 services offered by that provider. Information shall be 14 provided to consumers in [an] a clear, conspicuous and 15 understandable format [that enables consumers to compare 16 prices and services on a uniform basis]. The commission shall 17 develop a uniform format for disclosure of information which 18 will enable consumers easily to compare prices, services and 19 the environmental characteristics of electric products. The 20 commission shall impose penalties for disclosure of 21 fraudulent or deceptive information. Commission penalties 22 shall not limit penalties under other laws. 23 (2.1) (i) Each electric distribution company, 24 electricity supplier, marketer, aggregator and broker 25 shall provide to each prospective customer and monthly to 26 customers for each electricity product sold generation 27 price information, including monthly consumption and 28 average price provided in a cents-per-kilowatt-hour 29 format for each billing cycle. 30 (ii) Each electric distribution company, electricity 19990S0662B0718 - 3 -
1 supplier, marketer, aggregator and broker shall provide 2 to each prospective customer and every six months to 3 customers for each electricity product sold the 4 following: 5 (A) The resource mix and percentage of power 6 generated from each source. 7 (B) The emissions characteristics per kilowatt 8 hour and the percentage of emissions of each 9 pollutant in comparison with the reference level. 10 (C) Whether each resource is a renewable 11 resource. 12 * * * 13 Section 4. This act shall take effect in 60 days. B25L66DMS/19990S0662B0718 - 4 -