AARP Maryland Hosts Town Hall Meeting to Stop Pepco’s Unfair Utility Rate Hike

[Howard Hartman]

AARP Maryland Hosts Town Hall Meeting
to Stop Pepco’s Unfair Utility Rate Hike

CHEVY CHASE, MD—AARP Maryland is hosting a town hall meeting, Sunday, April 22, 2012 at the National 4H Youth Conference Center in Chevy Chase to mobilize support to stop Pepco’s utility rate hike.

AARP Maryland Town Hall Meeting
Sunday, April 22, 2012
1:00 pm – 3:00 pm
National 4H Youth Conference Center
7100 Connecticut Avenue
Chevy Chase, Maryland
RSVP by calling 1-877-926-8300

“What Pepco is asking from consumers is ridiculous,” said AARP Maryland Associate State Director of Advocacy Tammy Bresnahan. “Pepco’s looking for higher rates while its customers are still looking for better service.”

In December 2011, Pepco filed for a rate increase with the Maryland Public Service Commission (PSC). That same month Pepco was fined a record-setting $1 million for failure to provide reliable service. AARP formally intervened in this rate case in January 2012 on behalf of the 530,000 customers Pepco serves in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties.

Pepco is requesting a $67.6 million increase in its rates, primarily to cover the utility’s expenses for service reliability improvements and customer care programs. AARP submitted written testimony in the case on March 23, 2012, challenging:

• Pepco’s request to include additional costs for a “customer care initiative” in the rates;
  
  
• Pepco’s request for recovery of costs for a new customer accounting and billing system; and
  
  
• Pepco’s request for additional operations and maintenance expense reimbursement to comply with the PSC’s proposed revisions to its reliability and customer service standards.

“It’s absurd: why should you pay Pepco more to provide you with the services you should be receiving in the first place,” added Bresnahan?

To further highlight the ridiculousness of the Pepco rate hike request, AARP is running an advertisement about Sunday’s upcoming town hall meeting in the Montgomery County Sentinel next week completely upside down. The ad headline reads: “Running an Ad Upside Down Makes about as Much Sense as Pepco’s Proposed Rate Hike.”

During Sunday’s town hall, AARP Maryland will share information on the rate case, what consumers can do to make their voices heard and take questions from participants. There will also be refreshments and giveaways. Free parking is available on site.

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