52 Pa. Code § 56.32 - Security and cash deposits
(a) In
addition to the right to collect a deposit under any Commission regulation or
order, the public utility may require a cash deposit, payable during a 90-day
period in accordance with §
56.38 (relating to payment period
for deposits by applicants), in an amount that is equal to 1/6 of an
applicant's estimated annual bill at the time the public utility determines a
deposit is required, based upon the following:
(1) An applicant who previously received
public utility distribution services and was a customer of the public utility
and whose service was terminated for any of the following reasons:
(i) Nonpayment of an undisputed delinquent
account.
(ii) Failure to complete
payment of a deposit, provide a guarantee or establish credit.
(iii) Failure to permit access to meters,
service connections or other property of the public utility for the purpose of
replacement, maintenance, repair or meter reading.
(iv) Unauthorized use of the public utility
service delivered on or about the affected dwelling.
(v) Failure to comply with the material terms
of a payment arrangement.
(vi)
Fraud or material misrepresentation of identity for the purpose of obtaining
public utility service.
(vii)
Tampering with meters, including bypassing a meter or removal of an AMR device
or other public utility equipment.
(viii) Violating tariff provisions on file
with the Commission so as to endanger the safety of a person or the integrity
of the delivery system of the public utility.
(2) An applicant who is unable to establish
creditworthiness to the satisfaction of the public utility through the use of a
generally accepted credit scoring methodology, as provided in a
Commission-approved tariff, and which employs standards for using the
methodology that fall within the range of general industry practice. The credit
scoring methodology utilized for this purpose must specifically assess the risk
of public utility bill payment.
(b) Except for applicants who are subject to
a deposit under subsection (a), a city natural gas distribution operation may
require a deposit from the applicant as follows:
(1) When an applicant has household income
above 300% of the Federal poverty level, a deposit of 1/6 of the applicant's
estimated annual bill shall be paid in full at the time the city natural gas
distribution operation determines a deposit is required.
(2) When an applicant has household income no
greater than 300% of the Federal poverty level, 1/12 of the applicant's
estimated annual bill shall be paid in full at the time the city natural gas
distribution operation determines a deposit is required. Applicants who enroll
into the customer assistance program made available by the city natural gas
distribution operation are not subject to this paragraph.
(3) The Commission will permit a city natural
gas distribution operation to refuse to provide service to an applicant when
the applicant has a pending lien or civil judgment by the city natural gas
distribution operation outstanding against the applicant or against property
owned in whole or in part by the applicant unless the applicant enters into a
payment arrangement for the payment of the amount associated with the lien or
judgment that remains outstanding at the time of the application.
(c) Prior to providing public
utility service, a public utility may require the applicant to provide the
names of each adult occupant residing at the location and proof of their
identity. For purposes of this section, valid identification consists of one
government issued photo identification. If one government issued photo
identification is not available, the public utility may require the applicant
to present two alternative forms of identification, as long as one of the
identifications includes a photo of the individual. In lieu of requiring
identification, the public utility may ask, but may not require, the individual
to provide the individual's Social Security Number. Public utilities shall take
all appropriate actions needed to ensure the privacy and confidentiality of
identification information provided by their applicants and
customers.
(d) A public utility is
not required to provide service if the applicant fails to pay the full amount
of the cash deposit within the time periods under §
56.38. If the applicant chooses to
pay the deposit in installments, installment payments must be paid in full by
the due date. Failure to pay an installment in full by the due date is grounds
for termination of service as provided in §
56.81 (relating to authorized
termination of service).
(e)
Notwithstanding subsection (a), a public utility may not require a cash deposit
from an applicant who is, based upon household income, confirmed to be eligible
for a customer assistance program. An applicant is confirmed to be eligible for
a customer assistance program by the public utility if the applicant provides
income documents or other information attesting to his or her eligibility for
state benefits based on household income eligibility requirements that are
consistent with those of the public utility's customer assistance
programs.
Notes
The provisions of this § 56.32 amended under the Public Utility Code, 66 Pa.C.S. § § 331, 501, 504, 1301, 1305, 1401-1419, 1501, 1504 and 1509.
State regulations are updated quarterly; we currently have two versions available. Below is a comparison between our most recent version and the prior quarterly release. More comparison features will be added as we have more versions to compare.
No prior version found.