SENATOR Celina R. Babauta on Thursday prefiled Senate Bill 24-14, which would “temporarily suspend the collection of certain charges by the Commonwealth Utilities Corp.”
These include all water electric charges and the percentage of the Fuel Adjustment Charge or FAC allocated to the payment of water loss, bad debt or delinquent accounts for three years.
During the suspension period, the bill states, “customer accounts shall not be negatively impacted by the non-payment of late fees and penalties.”
Babauta said she introduced similar legislation during the “lame duck period” of the 23rd Senate late last year, but “it was not entertained.”
CUC at the time said the FAC “isn’t inflated and that it follows the formulas as regulated by” the Commonwealth Public Utilities Commission.
CUC also said that passing “artificial rates would not only impact CUC’s ability to continue providing services but will impact the community when the rates are reevaluated.”
In a statement on Thursday, Babauta said the “people of the CNMI are facing unprecedented challenges due to the rising cost of living, and energy costs are a significant burden on families and businesses. This legislation is a direct response to those concerns, offering a temporary reprieve from these charges while we work towards long-term solutions. More importantly, this bill’s intent is to protect consumers from unfair billing practices.”
She said FAC, “a fluctuating charge on residents’ power bills, is a pass-through mechanism that allows utilities to recover the costs of fuel used to generate electricity.”
She said a portion of the charge covers bad debt or delinquent accounts.
The electric water charge attributed to lost revenue “is a charge that covers the revenue lost by the utility due to factors such as theft and infrastructure issues, among others,” she added.
Babauta said her bill would “temporarily suspend these specific portions of the FAC and electric water charge, providing immediate financial relief to ratepayers.”
She said she also asked Altus Asia Group “to provide their financial plans and a presentation to the CNMI government, including CUC, for alternative energy solutions. Altus Asia Group has informed me that they met with CUC officials last November to no avail. It is mind-blowing why CUC has not issued an open RFP for such alternatives. The management of CUC needs to be open to companies who desire to present solutions to the high cost of utilities here in the CNMI. Instead, they would much rather spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on a consulting firm when many of the solutions are right in front of their eyes. The need for alternative energy solutions is clear. Fossil fuel prices are volatile and subject to global market fluctuations, making energy costs unpredictable and burdensome for consumers and businesses,” Babauta added.
“CUC’s power plant is antiquated and outdated leading to inefficiencies, higher operating costs, and environmental concerns. The infrastructure needs replacement or significant upgrades,” she added.
Her bill, she said, “is necessary to alleviate the immediate pressure on our community. We must continue to explore and invest in sustainable energy solutions that will provide long-term stability and affordability for our residents and businesses.”
As of press time Thursday evening, Variety was unable to obtain a comment from CUC.
