Relating to the Disconnection of Residential Utility during a State of Emergency
Summary
HB2822 would create a new article in West Virginia law governing utility service during a state of emergency declared by executive order. The bill generally prohibits public utilities from disconnecting residential service for nonpayment during the emergency, so long as the customer enters into a deferred payment agreement covering past-due amounts over a period at least as long as the emergency lasted. It also requires the customer to attest to financial hardship, bars down payments, late fees, and penalties in those agreements, and requires utilities to restore service within 48 hours if service was cut during the emergency.
The bill also extends post-emergency protections by prohibiting disconnection for 180 days after the emergency ends for customers whose financial circumstances changed because of the emergency and who default on deferred payment agreements or owe arrears. Utilities must notify customers of these rights and make reasonable efforts to contact affected customers to offer deferred payment arrangements. At the same time, the bill preserves utilities’ ability to recover deferred or lost revenues after the emergency through existing lawful means and allows disconnection when necessary to protect health and safety.
Impact
If enacted, HB2822 would add a new emergency-utility consumer protection article to the West Virginia Code, limiting when public utilities and municipalities may disconnect residential service during and shortly after a declared state of emergency. It would impose new duties on utilities to offer deferred payment plans, provide notice, restore service quickly, and delay certain collections-related disconnections, while also preserving utility authority to recover unpaid amounts after the emergency and to disconnect service for health and safety reasons.
Sentiment
The available record shows no committee transcript or vote history, so there is no documented debate or recorded floor sentiment to assess. Based on the bill text and caption, the measure appears consumer-protective and aimed at preventing hardship-related utility shutoffs during emergencies, suggesting a likely sympathetic posture toward residential customers affected by disasters or executive emergency declarations.
Contention
The main policy tension in the bill is between protecting residential customers from losing essential utility service during a disaster and preserving utilities’ ability to collect revenue and manage delinquent accounts. Potential points of contention include the mandatory deferred payment terms, the ban on down payments and penalties, the 180-day post-emergency disconnection moratorium, and the requirement that customers attest to hardship. Utilities may also focus on administrative burden and cash-flow impacts, while supporters would likely emphasize continuity of essential service and consumer protection during emergencies.
Relating to certain municipal regulation of certain mixed-use and multifamily residential development projects and conversion of certain commercial buildings to mixed-use and multifamily residential occupancy.