Ohio Administrative Code
Title 4901:1 - Utilities
Chapter 4901:1-29 - Minimum Standards for Competitive Retail Natural Gas Service
Section 4901:1-29-12 - Customer billing and payments
Current through all regulations passed and filed through December 11, 2023
(A) A retail natural gas supplier or governmental aggregator (and/or its agent) may bill customers directly for competitive retail natural gas services pursuant to this rule. A retail natural gas supplier or governmental aggregator may bill for consolidated services if it can demonstrate, pursuant to the standards contained in the incumbent natural gas company tariffs, to the incumbent natural gas company and the commission it has the capability to bill customers for such services.
(B) Customer bills issued by or for retail natural gas suppliers and governmental aggregators shall be accurate and understandable, be rendered at intervals consistent with those of the customer's natural gas company, and contain sufficient information for customers to compute and compare the total cost of competitive retail natural gas service(s). Such bills shall also include:
ending meter reading(s), multiplier(s), and any other consumption(s) adjustments.
The Ohio consumers' counsel (OCC) represents residential utility customers in matters before the PUCO. The OCC can be contacted at 1-877-742-5622 (toll free) from eight a.m. to five p.m. weekdays, or at http://www.pickocc.org."
(C) If applicable, each retail natural gas supplier and governmental aggregator shall, upon request, provide customers with the name and street address/location of the nearest payment center and/or authorized payment agent and disclose any fee associated with using such payment center and/or agent.
(D) When a customer pays the bill at a payment center or to an authorized payment agent, such payment shall be credited to the customer's account as of the day it is received by such payment center or agent.
(E) Each retail natural gas supplier and governmental aggregator shall establish policies and procedures for handling billing disputes and requests for payment arrangements.
(F) Partial payments applied towards any past due amount on a bill or the balance due on a disconnection notice must be apportioned to past due natural gas company service and delivery charges, then to any current natural gas company service and delivery charges, before being applied to any retail natural gas supplier or governmental aggregator charges unless the customer pays the entire amount past due or more. In that case, any amount paid over the amount past due shall be applied first to natural gas company service and delivery charges.
(G) Natural gas companies shall make dual billing and consolidated billing available to retail natural gas suppliers and governmental aggregators.
(H) Customer bills issued by or for a natural gas company shall state the customer's historical consumption during each of the preceding twelve months, with a total and average consumption for such twelve-month period.
(I) Natural gas companies shall prominently display the "apples to apples" notice on customer bills for customers in accordance with rule 4901:1-13-11 of the Administrative Code.
(J) Natural gas companies shall comply with Chapter 4901:1-18 of the Administrative Code regarding disconnection of a customer's natural gas service .
(K) For the purposes of this rule, full payment of a budget amount due shall not be construed as a partial payment.
(L) In the event the retail natural gas supplier or opt-in governmental aggregator bills for its own services, the retail natural gas supplier and/or governmental aggregator may terminate the contract for customer nonpayment only upon fourteen days' notice.
(M) Any competitive retail natural gas service supplier that bills for both regulated and unregulated service shall comply with paragraphs (E) and (F) of rule 4901:1-13-11 of the Administrative Code.
Effective:
12/1/2014
Five Year Review (FYR) Dates:
07/28/2014 and
07/28/2019
Promulgated
Under: 111.15
Statutory
Authority: 4929.10,
4929.22
Rule
Amplifies: 4905.05,
4905.06,
4905.07,
4905.261,
4929.22,
4929.26,
4929.27,
4911.021
Prior
Effective Dates: 7/4/02, 4/6/06, 4/13/07, 2/11/08, 12/27/08,
2/16/12