The Maine Public Utilities Commission on Tuesday denied the Maine public advocate's emergency request for relief for low-income Mainers facing high electricity bills.
Public Advocate William Harwood had requested a one-time emergency bill credit of $75 for each customer in the Low-Income Assistance Program. But commission chair Phil Bartlett says the commission did not have the authority to grant the request, and that it would have shifted costs to other electric customers. He says further assistance programs are best handled by the governor's office and the Legislature, which is now wrestling with the issue.
Harwood says he'd welcome any legislative action.
"Certainly, if the Legislature can reach out and provide financial assistance to these low-income households who are going to struggle this winter, that's great news, and it makes this defeat easier to accept," he says.
The request comes after the regulators announced electricity supply rate hikes of 49% and 38% for customers of CMP and Versant who choose the standard offer. The new rates take effect next month.
Harwood says he'd hoped the $75 credit would have offset roughly three months of the impending rate hikes for the 25,000 households participating in the Low-Income Assistance Program.
