Hartford, CT) – Attorney General William Tong submitted testimony today to the Energy and Technology Committee of the Connecticut State Legislature, urging strong action to protect ratepayers. In written testimony, Attorney General Tong offers support and key suggestions to strengthen ratepayer protections in the bill.
“I commend your leadership during this critical moment for Connecticut ratepayers. This summer, while enduring the current public health and economic crises, Connecticut consumers coalesced in their anger at their Eversource electric bills skyrocketing in July. Then, consumers of both Eversource and United Illuminating were left in the dark for up to one week during the hot days of August after Tropical Storm Isaias thrashed our State. Connecticut ratepayers have a right to be angry and deserve meaningful change. Connecticut families simply cannot afford to pay more for their energy,” Attorney General Tong said.
Key areas of note in his testimony:
Performance-Based Regulation: Attorney General Tong cautioned that Performance-Based Regulation could raise rates without improving utility performance. “The success of PBR depends entirely on how it is designed and implemented. If done well, it could provide meaningful benefits to ratepayers. If done poorly, it can raise rates without improving performance,” he states in his testimony. Standards and metrics must relate directly to the needs of ratepayers, including lower rates, service reliability and service quality, Tong cautioned. They must be clearly defined, with both incentives for exceeding targets and penalties for falling short.
Executive Compensation: Attorney General Tong strongly supports reining in excessive compensation for utility executives. Instead of tying executive compensation limits to other states (where executives may also be overpaid), Attorney General Tong urges the legislature to consider tying compensation to comparable positions in Connecticut. Any incentives given to executives must be tied directly to successful measures taken to benefit ratepayers, such as lower rates, reliability, and better service quality.
Compensating ratepayers for food and prescription loss with shareholder funds: Attorney General Tong strongly supports compensating ratepayers for food and prescription losses. Any funds to do so must come from shareholders, not ratepayers.
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