Gas, Electric Utilities Suspending Service Shutoffs
March 13 2020 - 2:22PM
Dow Jones News
By Russell Gold
Water, gas and electric utilities across the U.S. are suspending
the shutting off of service for a failure to pay bills during the
ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
From coast to coast, utilities say they are taking these steps
to help customers who are currently or may soon be going through a
difficult economic period.
Duke Energy Corp. said Friday it was suspending disconnections
for nonpayment, effectively immediately, for all home and business
accounts in Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee,
South Carolina and Florida.
"We will continue to look for ways to support customer needs
during the pandemic," the company, which serves about 7.8 million
customers, said in a statement.
Public Service Enterprise Group Inc. unit PSE&G, which
provides natural gas and electricity in New Jersey, said it was
taking the step because of the health and financial hardship people
may soon face.
"We recognize that customers may experience financial difficulty
as a result of the outbreak, whether they or a family member fall
ill, are required to quarantine, or because their income is
otherwise affected. We hope to alleviate those customers' concerns
about their electric or gas service during this time," the utility
said.
On Thursday, San Francisco-based utility PG&E Corp. said it
had voluntarily started a moratorium on service disconnections for
both residential and commercial customers, and said it would offer
flexible pay plans as needed.
Houston suspended water disconnections until the end of April,
following the lead of Seattle.
"We're keeping our utilities on for the duration of the COVID-19
Civil Emergency in Seattle," Seattle Mayor Jenny A. Durkan said in
a statement earlier this week. "We're already seeing the impact
Covid-19 is having on working people, nonprofits, and small
business owners."
Seattle City Light and Seattle Public Utilities provide electric
and water service to customers in the city
Write to Russell Gold at russell.gold@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 13, 2020 14:07 ET (18:07 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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