Senate Bill Addresses Unfair Opt Out Fees for Maryland Utility Customers

The Maryland Senate is holding a hearing on February 17th to consider a bill that would alleviate the unfair opt out fees many Maryland utility customers are now paying. Thousands of Marylanders have chosen to opt out of a utility smart meter installation. Tens of thousands more would like to opt out as well, but cannot afford the opt out fees approved last year by the Public Service Commission (PSC). Utilities in Maryland now charge a $75 upfront fee and a monthly fee of $11 to $17 for opting out of a smart meter. The main reasons utility customers are opting out are: 1) the meters can lead to invasions of privacy; 2) the utilities never conducting any testing to determine what the health impacts of the intense radiation emitted from smart meters might have; 3) the meters damage appliances; and 4) many customers are finding their electric bills double and triple.

Senate Bill 9, introduced by Senator McFadden and cosponsored by Senator Kelley, addresses the smart meter fees as well as a number of other issues surrounding customer dissatisfaction with the new meters. Supporters of the bill, including Maryland Smart Meter Awareness, a grassroots organization that has been instrumental in getting the opt out approved in Maryland, contend that these fees are arbitrary and not supported by the cost figures supplied by the utilities. “These fees effectively eliminate the right to opt out for a large number of Maryland citizens. These unjustified fees are nothing less than paying the utilities ‘protection money” says Jonathan Libber, President of Maryland Smart Meter Awareness. “These wireless meters are jeopardizing the health, safety, security and privacy of every man, woman and child living in the Pepco, Delmarva Power and Light, SMECO and BGE service areas.”

Senate Bill 9 directs that utilities to charge rates based on the actual costs for the type of meter involved. Those choosing a smart meter will pay only for the costs of the smart meter program, and those choosing to keep their analog meter will pay solely for the costs of administering that program. As it stands now, those who opt out of a smart meter must pay opt out fees in addition to the expected increases in the rate base to recoup the costs of the smart meter program, once these increases are approved by the PSC.

For more information on the bill and its amendments, please visit www.marylandsmartmeterawareness.org .