The Public Service Commission has voted to extend the moratorium on utility services through October. Effectively, that pushes the date back to next spring. From November 1st through April 15th, all water, gas, and electric shutoffs must be approved by the PSC before they occur. Sturgeon Bay Utilities General Manager Jim Stawicki says that most customers are not falling behind. The number of delinquencies is below average, but those who have fallen behind are racking up big bills. Some customers are thousands of dollars behind. Sturgeon Bay Utilities has encouraged customers to reach out if they need help with their accounts for months. That is still the recommended course of action, but SBU says that few are following through on it. Stawicki chalks it up to human behavior. He says a certain percentage of the population won’t pay if they don’t have to. He warns that eventually, the tab will come due. Stawicki says that could come in the form of increased rates for everyone, but most likely will be felt by landlords first.
The rate a utility charges is regulated by the state, which means it is difficult for the companies to absorb unpaid bills. The option to put the delinquencies on the tax rolls mitigates this and is implemented in two steps. The first has letters going out to both the landlord and tenant in October. That gives property owners the chance to pay by November 15th. If they do, the landlord can withhold the tenant’s security deposit to cover the tab and file a lien against their assets like other creditors if necessary. The Public Service Commission has not said whether the timeframe for this process will be altered due to COVID-19 as well.
SBU's Billing Department can be reachedby telephone (920-746-2820) or email (sbucustomerservice@wppienergy.org).
