Public Utilities
by: Northwest Justice Project
This publication is a summary of law contained in Codes, Statutes and Court Cases. For those who want to do further research we have included citations-that is the place were the information summarized can be found.
A "public utility" is a public utility district (PUD) or a governmental agency (such as a city or county) which provides water, electricity or gas. These are referred to in this pamphlet as the "provider." If you are unsure whether your services are public or private, call the company to find out or you may call the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) toll free at 1-800-562-6150.
The utility is provided by a private company or source, such as a community well of a homeowners' association, a cooperative such as Inland Power and Light or a privately owned utility company, such as Puget Power, Pacific Power and Light, Washington Water Power, Cascade Natural Gas, Northwest Natural Gas or Washington Natural Gas. Privately owned utilities are regulated by the Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) and you may have additional rights if you are served by a private utility. You can call the UTC for pamphlets on private utilities.
The provider may not refuse to give you utility service or put service in your name. However, you may have to do certain things before service in your name can begin. For example, you may be required to:
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pay or enter into a repayment plan for your past due bills (even if they are from a different address),
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pay a connect or reconnect fee,
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pay a security deposit (you may ask to have this waived with proof of a good payment record), and
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supply basic information and/or sign documents that you will pay for services.
Yes. There is no statewide protection against utility shut off for people with kids. Some counties or cities may have protections against shut off which aren't covered by this pamphlet; call the provider to ask about this. Also, many providers will work with customers who have emergency circumstances and have shown a history of good payment and a willingness to pay their back bills.
For low-income customers, a provider of residential heat may not shut your service off for nonpayment between November 15th and March 15th if you do all of the following:
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Within 5 days of getting the overdue notice, tell the provider that you cannot pay the bill. If you do not do this within 5 days and your service is already shut off, you can still get your service reconnected by following the remaining steps, but you will have to pay any reconnection charges.
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Find out who runs the federal energy assistance program in your area (usually the local Community Action Program or call the provider to find out). Provide the program with a statement of your household income for the past 12 months. The program will make sure you are low income and figure out the maximum amount you will have to pay on your bill. You should also ask the program about any of the other services required, such as weatherization or utility assistance.
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Prove you have applied for any other help available in your community for home heating, and give a statement that any help you receive from these organizations will be used to pay current and future utility bills.
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Prove you have applied for low-income weatherization help if it is available for your house or apartment.
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Agree to a payment plan which will get you current by the following October 15th. You may pay as much as you want during the repayment period, but the provider may not require you to pay more than 7% of your monthly income (plus a portion of any amounts billed after you turn in your application which you did not pay).
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Agree to pay the money owed even if you move.
A P.U.D. or city is required to include this information in your past due notice, and is required to help you get through all the steps above. The law for this section is found in The Revised Code of Washington (RCW) 54.16.285 (for P.U.D's) and RCW 35.21.300 (for cities), which can be found at your local library.
Yes, but you must get prior notice of the shut-off and a chance to appeal. Different providers have different notice periods, and different methods for appealing actions. If you did not get written notice of the shut-off, read the next section of this pamphlet, too. If the utility is already in your name, or if you and the landlord agreed that you would pay the utility, you are already responsible for payment and should contact the provider to arrange a repayment plan. If your landlord is responsible for the bill, though, the provider should give you written notice of a threatened shut off and an opportunity to go down and put the utility in your own name. You would then be responsible for paying future bills to that address. The provider cannot make you pay the past bills of the landlord or a prior tenant. However, you may be required to pay a security deposit and/or a reconnect fee.
While you are negotiating with the provider, you should be speaking with your landlord, too. Washington State's Residential Landlord-Tenant law prohibits a landlord from shutting off a tenant's utility service even if the tenant is behind in rent. The law also provides penalties for the landlord who intentionally shuts off service, including damages to the tenant of up to $100 per day for each day the tenant went without service, actual damages (money out of your pocket due to the shut off, such as food spoiled, bottled water from the store, etc.), and attorney's fees and court costs. (See RCW 59.18.300) If you need to collect money from your landlord for intentionally shutting off your utility (that includes intentionally failing to pay the bill), please see our publications on Small Claims Court and Tenants' Rights. Deducting the money from your rent before you win a judgment against the landlord in court may result in your eviction. You should talk to a lawyer before deducting anything from the rent.
There are several federal cases requiring providers to notify customers before shutting off their service so that the customer has an opportunity to tell his or her side of the story. If you are a tenant whose lease states that the landlord is responsible for your utility bill, be sure to read the section above, too. If your utility was shut off without notice to you, you should call the provider right away and speak with the person in charge. The provider should turn your service back on right away and keep it on until the proper notice and opportunity to respond has been given. In some cases, this may only buy you the time it will take for the provider to give you the proper notice. If it refuses to restore service, ask to speak to the lawyer who handles their affairs (often the city attorney). There is no specific law on how much notice must be given, but time periods as short as 24 hours have been found acceptable by courts.
Yes. Any provider of utility service to heat your home or apartment, or cities providing water, must offer low-income customers the option of "budget billing," or "equal payment." It must do this regardless of the time of year you request it, regardless of how long you have lived at your current residence, and regardless of whether you rent or own your residence.
No. Unless you had some individual obligation on the old bill, you are not responsible for bills that someone else did not pay. If the utility was terminated, however, you may be liable for a reconnect fee. You probably are responsible for all or part of past bills in someone else's name if you did have an individual obligation, such as you lived at the address during the time billed or if you agreed with the landlord or prior tenant to pay the bill for that time period.
If your bill is too high because of a water leak or other emergency situation that was not your fault, many providers will work with you to make a payment plan and/or to cancel part of the charge. Call the provider and explain what happened. It is not obligated to do this, and the more polite you are, the better your chances.
Any time you disagree with the amount of your bill, you should call the provider right away. State the reason you disagree and, if the problem cannot be fixed, request an administrative hearing. Many providers have deadlines for requesting hearings after receiving the bill, so you should find out what the deadlines are. It may be a good idea to request a hearing even if you are trying to work it out informally with the provider. If the informal process doesn't work, you will not have missed the deadline. It is always best to request the appeal in writing and save a copy of the dated request for yourself. Bring any papers or people who can support your claim to the hearing. Be sure to bring extra copies of the papers with you for the PUD and for the hearing officer (judge). The hearing officer will explain any appeal rights you have if you disagree with his or her decision.
You are not liable for anyone else's bill but your own unless you agree to be. However, property owners are liable for utilities provided to the land they own, even if the tenant was supposed to pay. You do not always have to sign a paper to be liable for someone else's bill. Consistently paying someone else's bill, having your name on their account, or promising you would pay may all be seen as agreeing to be responsible for their account. If you have been responsible for someone's account in the past, but no longer want to be, send a dated, written statement to the provider stating that you will no longer be responsible. Include the name(s) and account number(s), and keep a copy of the letter for yourself. If charges for those accounts show up on your bill, see the section above regarding billing disagreements.
PUDs and other providers may provide a substantial discount on electrical service to senior citizens and low income families. Contact your provider to find out if it offers a discount. Most PUDs have funds to help low - income households with utility bills they cannot pay, especially during the winter months. Different PUDs have different requirements for eligibility. You may also want to try calling your local Community Action Program (CAP) and DSHS office. DSHS has programs for families with children called Additional Requirements for Emergent Needs and Additional Requirements which can help with utilities if they are about to be shut off. This program is only available one time per year. If you want more information regarding these programs, see our publications Consolidated Emergency Assistance Program: Extra Money for Needy Families and Additional Requirements: Extra Money for Welfare (TANF) Recipients.
PUDs and other providers are required to provide you with written information about their services, about their policies and procedures about your rights as a utility consumer. This information includes explanations about the providers' credit and deposit requirements, rates and charges, metering and billing, payment arrangements, complaint procedures, among others. The provider must send you this information if you request it. If you are interested in receiving more information, you should contact your provider.
This publication provides general information concerning your rights and responsibilities. It is not intended as a substitute for specific legal advice.
This information is current as of the date of its printing, March 2001.
© 2001 Northwest Justice Project.
1-888-201-1014, TTY 1-888-201-9737
(Permission for copying and distribution granted to the Alliance for Equal Justice and individuals for non-commercial use only.)
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