Page 24 - AB

A28 u.s. news
Diamars 8 maart 2022

Food or power: Energy bill late fees force tough choices

(AP) — Chris Kinney, a resi- and face utility disconnec- But for some major utility
dent of Rapides Parish in tions. providers, including Entergy, “Historically few, if any, of
central Louisiana, has seen late payment fees make up far the late fees our utilities
his electricity disconnected For those who fall behind, more of the companies’ rev- charge are cost-based,” said
eight times in the past two it often means choosing be- enues than average. Kent Chandler, chairman of
years for falling behind on his tween paying for power and the Kentucky Public Service
energy bills to Cleco Power. affording other necessities. Nine companies, including Commission.
Baltimore Gas and Electric,
His family did everything Mary Boyd, who is 83 and Central Hudson Gas and Dan Kermode, a former pol-
they could think of to catch lives in New Orleans, said Electric, and Cleveland Elec- icy advisor at the Washington
up: pawning possessions, ac- her expensive energy utility tric Illuminating Co., derive Utilities and Transportation
cumulating vast bank over- tional average. bills from Entergy — a ma- more than 0.5% of their total Commission, said that rules
draft fees, borrowing money jor utility provider in Louisi- revenue from late payment on late fee penalties in many
and applying for energy as- Five power companies — ana and three other Southern fee collection from 2011 to states were decided long be-
sistance. Somehow, Kinney’s Cleco Power, Kentucky Pow- states — were causing her to 2020 — double and even fore the advent of new tech-
outstanding balance kept er Co. and three subsidiaries choose between medication, triple the national average of nologies and computer sys-
growing. of Entergy Corp. — aver- and other expenses such as about 0.24%. tems. Billing software and
aged more than $17.50 per repairing the damage to her automated meters have made
While his electrical charges customer in annual late fee fence caused by Hurricane Late fees are meant to cover the cost of collecting late pay-
added up to about $6,400 revenues between 2011 and Ida. the cost of collecting a bill, ments virtually zero for utili-
for the past two years, Cleco 2020. That’s three times the or the cost of disconnecting ties.
Power also billed him over national average of $5.83 per “I am sick. I have high blood or reconnecting power to a
$1,250 for being late on pay- customer in the same time pressure, asthma and arthri- residence. In Louisiana, state regulations
ing his bills, including late period. tis,” Boyd said. “Now just allow for up to a 5% penalty
fees, reconnection charges imagine this, this three hun- They’re not meant to be on late payments for all elec-
and deposits. “These charges The fees account for a small dred and some dollars energy punitive, said Odogwu Obi tric utilities. When asked for
keep piling up and there is no part of major energy compa- bill takes away from food and Linton, who sits on the board the rationale for why the late
way to catch up. The finan- nies’ overall revenue — less other things.” of directors of the National fees penalty was set at 5%,
cial strain was just insane,” than one-quarter of a per- Association of Regulatory Public Service Commission
Kinney said. Americans paid cent on average — but for the Power companies, including Utility Commissioners. press secretary Colby Cook
a combined $561 million in people who must pay them, Entergy and Cleco Power, said he could not comment
late payment fees to electrical they can be crushing. say late fees are an important If a customer pays the bill because the rules on late fees,
utilities in 2019. tool to encourage customers quickly, the utility doesn’t which were adopted in 1976,
Late fees typically punish to pay their bills. have to carry or pursue col- did not articulate the reason-
But how much you pay de- customers who are least able lection of the debt, Linton ing behind its adoption.
pends on where you live. to afford their utility bill to “Ultimately, late payment said. This saves the utility
begin with. Poorly insulated policies are put in place to company money on things “This is what’s unique about
An AP analysis of federal reg- homes and damage from help protect all customers like turnoff notices and mak- late fees — these are charges
ulatory data found that sev- natural disasters all contrib- from potential rate increases ing phone calls to collect late which are not to collect costs,
eral major utility companies ute to poor residents spend- caused by uncollected pay- payments. but to act as a disincentive for
in states like Louisiana, Mis- ing larger portions of their ments,” Entergy spokesper- late payment,” Kermode said.
sissippi, Kentucky, Florida paychecks on their energy son Jerry Nappi said in an But advocates say the amount
and Maryland are charging bills. And Black and Hispanic email. The company doesn’t being charged doesn’t reflect Some regulators and con-
customers late fees that are households are more likely to profit from late fees, he said. expenses to power compa- sumer advocates question
much higher than the na- experience energy insecurity nies. whether late fees even work.

Mask mandates go away in schools, but parent worries persist

(AP) — Major school dis- New York City became the gling out a young child whose ending school mask man-
tricts around the country latest school district to do Parents, teachers and princi- parents decided to keep them dates often point to low
are allowing students into away with its mask require- pals face a complicated bal- wearing a mask and another childhood vaccination rates
classrooms without masks ment Monday and Phila- ancing act in navigating the who had made a student feel among American children.
for the first time in near- delphia is poised to lift its new rules. Some families are guilty about their decision Only about a quarter of chil-
ly two years, eliminating mandate Wednesday, join- thrilled that their children no not to wear one. dren ages 5 to 11 have been
rules that stirred up in- ing big cities such as Hous- longer have to wear masks, fully vaccinated against the
tense fights among edu- ton and Dallas and a number while others say they’re still She said the instances served coronavirus, and about 58%
cators, school boards and of a states that made similar tentative and urging their as “teachable moments” to of children ages 12 to 17 are
parents throughout the moves in the last week. Chi- kids to keep wearing face remind staff that “a choice is inoculated, the CDC says.
pandemic. cago schools will end their coverings for now. Teachers a choice and that we need to
mask mandate next Monday. and principals are caught in honor that home’s choice.” New York, Connecticut,
the middle. Massachusetts, Illinois and
Falling infection rates and Delaware rescinded their
In Anchorage, Alaska, School new federal health guidance statewide school mask re-
Superintendent Deena Bish- are leading most of the re- quirements recently. New
op says lifting the mandate in maining states with statewide Jersey and Rhode Island
the city’s nearly 100 public school mask requirements dropped theirs officially
schools last week was a re- to drop the mandates. The Monday while Califor-
lief after months of acrimony Centers for Disease Control nia, Oregon and Washing-
even though there were some and Prevention recently is- ton have jointly announced
bumpy patches. sued new guidelines saying they’ll drop their statewide
most Americans live in places mandates effective March 12.
Bishop says she has been where healthy people, in-
made aware of a handful of cluding students, can safely In many instances, the ul-
comments teachers inadver- take a break from wearing timate decisions are being
tently made that “didn’t sit masks. made at the local school dis-
well” with students and their trict level.
parents, such as a teacher sin- But those hesitant about