Code of Vermont Rules › Agency 30 - PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSION › Sub-Agency 000 - GENERAL › Chapter 003 - RATEPAYER DEPOSITS FOR GAS, ELECTRIC, WATER, TELEPHONE AND CABLE TELEVISION SERVICE › Section 30 000 003 - RATEPAYER DEPOSITS FOR GAS, ELECTRIC, WATER, TELEPHONE AND CABLE TELEVISION SERVICE

Current through June, 2024
Section
			 3.200 RATEPAYER DEPOSITS FOR GAS, ELECTRIC, WATER,
			 TELEPHONE AND CABLE TELEVISION SERVICE
3.201 Definitions
Primary residence - For purposes of this rule,
				"primary residence" shall refer to the sole residence of the occupant
				or occupants, or, if the occupant or occupants have more than one
				residence, a residence in which the occupant(s) lives or expects to
				live for more than six months per year. A company may require an
				applicant to produce, upon request of the utility or cable television
				company, one of the following to prove primary residence: Vermont
				driver's licence or state identification card. proof of voter
				registration, library card, state income tax return, lease or
				property interests, welfare department proof of residence or similar
				documents. A primary residence shall not be considered as including
				the residence of a "seasonal customer."
Seasonal customer - A customer who expects to live in
				a residence for less than six months per year or who is determined to
				be residing in a residence which is not their primary
				residence.
Deposit - Any sum held by a utility or cable
				television company as security to ensure future payment.
3.202 Conditions for
			 Taking of Deposits.
(A) Any utility
			 or cable television company which requires a deposit from a ratepayer
			 as a precondition of initiating or continuing utility or cable
			 television service, shall:
(1)
			 establish the deposit amount based on the guidelines set forth in
			 Section 3.204;
(2) pay
			 interest on the deposit, as required under subsection (B);
(3) refund the deposit promptly as
			 provided in Section 3.205.
(4) advise any ratepayer required
			 to make a deposit of the reasons for the requirements, of the right
			 to pay it in installments, and of the calculations which the utility
			 or cable television company has used to support the amount of the
			 deposit:
(5) for an
			 account which serves a primary residence, offer the ratepayer for
			 whom the payment presents a burden the opportunity to pay a deposit,
			 at a minimum, in three equal payments with one third due immediately,
			 one third due within thirty days, and the final third due within
			 sixty days; and
(6)
			 inform the ratepayer that the necessity for a deposit or its amount
			 may be disputed by making a complaint to the Consumer Affairs and
			 Public Information Division of the Department of Public Service. The
			 ratepayer shall be informed of the Division's address and telephone
			 numbers, including its toll-free telephone number.
(B) Interest on deposits
			 shall be calculated as follows:
(1)
			 The interest rate applicable to customer deposits shall be
			 established at a constant rate for each calendar year. The rate shall
			 be equal to the Prime Lending Rate, as reported by the Federal
			 Reserve Bank of New York, on November 1 of the preceding calendar
			 year, minus two hundred basis points (2.0%). In the event that a
			 Prime Lending Rate is no longer published, the interest rate shall be
			 equal to the average federal funds rate for one-year notes on
			 November 1, plus one hundred basis points (1.0%).
(2) Interest on each deposit shall
			 be calculated using a simple interest formula using the rate
			 prescribed under subdivision (B)(1) that existed on the date the
			 deposit is made. That rate shall be applied to the entire term of the
			 deposit, up to twelve months. For example, if a customer deposit were
			 made on the first of December, the interest rate for the ensuing
			 twelve months would be the interest rate calculated under subdivision
			 (B)(1) during the calendar year the December deposit was
			 made.
(3) If the deposit
			 is returned sooner than one year, interest shall be
			 pro-rated.
(4) If the
			 deposit is kept longer than one year, interest shall be credited to
			 the customer's bill during the billing period that includes the
			 anniversary of the deposit. Thereafter, interest shall be paid as
			 though the continuing deposit had been newly made.
3.303 Grounds
			 for Requiring a Deposit.
Utilities and cable companies shall limit collection
				of deposits for service to primary residences to situations where the
				applicant or existing customer presents a credit risk. Existing
				customers may be required to pay a deposit only after they have been
				disconnected for non-payment of valid charges, pursuant to PSB Rule
				3.300. Utilities and cable television companies may collect a deposit
				in the absence of proof from an applicant of creditworthiness.
				Applicants can show proof of their creditworthiness with one of the
				following:
(1) a reference
			 from a bank indicating that the applicant has had an active checking
			 account for at least one year and has had no account that has been
			 overdrawn within the last year;
(2) a letter from one or more
			 utilities or cable television companies within or outside of the
			 state of Vermont indicating that the customer has maintained a good
			 credit record for the past two years;
(3) a written statement from a
			 creditworthy customer guaranteeing payment; or
(4) other reasonable demonstrations
			 of creditworthiness.
Utilities and cable television companies are required
				to provide to a customer a letter of good credit within three working
				days after the customer requests such a statement. A letter of good
				credit shall be given if the customer has received no more than one
				disconnection notice within the last year and no disconnection within
				the last two years. If a customer has been with a company for less
				than two years and has not been disconnected nor received more than
				one disconnection notice, the utility or cable television company
				shall provide a statement indicating the length of service and the
				number of disconnection notices received. If a customer does not make
				the final payment after a letter of good credit rating has been
				provided, the utility or cable television company sending the letter
				of good credit may notify the utility or cable television company to
				whom the letter is sent of the failure of the customer to make the
				final payment. Based on such information, the utility or cable
				television company receiving the letter of good credit may require a
				deposit.
If the utility or cable television company accepts a
				third-party guarantee, the guarantee agreement must be in writing and
				must contain the amount and time period covered under the guarantee.
				The person providing the guarantee will be held responsible for any
				uncollectible bills of the customer for whom they provide the
				guarantee. The utility or cable television company may cancel the
				guarantee agreement, with notice to the customer, if the guarantor
				loses good credit standing, and a guarantor may cancel the agreement
				with at least thirty days notice to the utility or cable television
				company and the customer. If the guarantee agreement is cancelled or
				the term has expired, the utility or cable television company may
				demand a deposit from the customer, unless the customer has
				established a good credit history with the utility or cable
				television company. A good credit history is shown where, if the
				customer had not had the guarantee and had been required to pay a
				deposit, the deposit would have been returned.
3.204 Calculation of
			 Deposit Amount.
Any utility or cable television company requiring a
				deposit shall limit the deposit to a sum not to exceed two-twelfths
				of the reasonably estimated charge for utility or cable television
				service for the ensuing twelve months. In the case of seasonal
				customers, a deposit shall not exceed one half of the reasonably
				estimated charge for the ensuing service or two-twelfths of the
				reasonably estimated charge for 12 months of service, whichever is
				greater. A reasonably estimated charge should be based on the history
				of actual usage for the dwelling unit or household. If no actual
				usage records exist, the reasonably estimated charge should be based
				on the usage of dwellings or households with similar characteristics.
				A utility or cable television company may not collect a minimum
				deposit which exceeds the reasonably estimated charge for the ensuing
				service.
3.205
			 Return of Deposits.
Any utility or cable television company collecting a
				deposit from a ratepayer shall refund the deposit promptly with
				accrued interest either in cash or by credit to the ratepayer's bill
				for service if the ratepayer's account is current upon completion of
				the following requirements:
(1) following a period of twelve
			 consecutive months in which the ratepayer has not been disconnected
			 and has received no more than three disconnection notices, for
			 services billed monthly; or
(2) following a period of twelve
			 consecutive months in which the ratepayer has not been disconnected
			 and has received no more than two disconnection notices for services
			 billed every other month or quarterly; or
(3) after termination of service,
			 when it occurs first prior to the completion of the requirements of
			 Section 3.205(1) or (2).
To meet the requirement that deposits be returned
				promptly, the utility or cable television company must return the
				deposit, less any deduction for amount due, in a single payment
				within thirty days of receipt of the ratepayer's final payment, or at
				the time of the next billing whichever comes first, or upon
				completion of requirements for the return of the deposit.
Sec. 2. Effective Date
This rule amendment shall take effect January 1, 1999
				and shall apply to all customer deposits made thereafter. Amounts
				already on deposit on January 1, 1999, shall continue to accrue
				interest at 10 percent until the 1999 anniversary date of the
				deposit, and thereafter shall be subject to this
				rule.