| (a) Dominant certificated telecommunications utility
(DCTU).
(1) Bill due date. The bill provided to the customer
shall include the payment due date, which shall not be less than 16
days after issuance.
(A) The issuance date is the postmark date on the envelope
containing the bill or the issuance date on the bill if there is no
postmark or envelope.
(B) Payment for service is delinquent if not received
at the DCTU or at the DCTU's authorized payment agency by close of
business on the due date.
(C) If the sixteenth day falls on a holiday or weekend,
then the due date shall be the next work day after the sixteenth day.
(2) Penalty on delinquent bills for retail service.
A DCTU providing any service to the state, including service to an
agency in any branch of government, shall not assess a fee, penalty,
interest, or other charge to the state for delinquent payment of a
bill.
(3) Billing adjustments.
(A) Service interruptions. In the event a customer's
service is interrupted other than by the negligence or willful act
of the customer, and it remains interrupted for 24 hours or longer
after being reported and after access to the premises is made available,
an appropriate refund shall be made to the customer.
(i) The amount of refund shall be:
(I) determined on the basis of the known period of
interruption, generally beginning from the time the service interruption
is first reported; and
(II) the refund to the customer shall be the proportionate
part of the month's flat rate charges for the period of days and that
portion of the service facilities rendered useless or inoperative.
(ii) The refund may be made by a credit on a subsequent
bill.
(B) Overbilling. If charges are found to be higher
than authorized by the DCTU's tariffs or the terms and conditions
of service, an appropriate refund shall be made to the customer.
(i) The refund shall be made for the entire period
of the overbilling.
(ii) If the overbilling is corrected within three billing
cycles of the initial bill in error, interest is not required to be
paid on the overcharge.
(iii) If the overbilling is not corrected within three
billing cycles of the initial bill in error, interest shall be paid
on the amount of the overcharges. The minimum interest to be paid
shall be based on the rate set by the commission on or before December
1 of the preceding calendar year, compounded monthly, and accruing
from the date of payment or the initial date of the bill in error.
(iv) The refund may be made by a credit on a subsequent
bill, unless the customer requests otherwise.
(C) Underbilling. If charges are found to be lower
than authorized by the DCTU's tariffs or terms and conditions of service,
or if the DCTU failed to bill the customer for service, then:
(i) The customer may be backbilled for the amount that
was underbilled for no more than six months from the date the error
was discovered unless underbilling is a result of theft of service
by the customer.
(ii) Service may be disconnected if the customer fails
to pay charges arising from an underbilling.
(iii) If the underbilling is $50 or more, the DCTU
shall offer the customer a deferred payment plan option for the same
length of time as that of the underbilling. A deferred payment plan
need not be offered to a customer whose underpayment is due to theft
of service.
(iv) Interest on underbilled amounts shall:
(I) not be charged unless such amounts are found to
be the result of theft of service by the customer; and
(II) not exceed an amount based on the rate set by
the commission on or before December 1 of the preceding calendar year,
compounded monthly, and accruing from the day the customer is found
to have first tampered with, bypassed, or diverted service.
(4) Disputed bills. If there is a dispute between a
customer and a DCTU about any bill for DCTU service, the DCTU shall:
(A) investigate and report the results to the customer;
and
(B) inform the customer of the complaint procedures
of the commission in accordance with §26.30 of this title (relating
to Complaints), if the dispute is not resolved.
(5) Notice of alternative payment programs or payment
assistance. When a customer contacts a DCTU and indicates inability
to pay a bill or need of assistance with payment, the DCTU shall inform
the customer of all alternative payment options and payment assistance
programs available from the DCTU, such as payment arrangements, deferred
payment plans, and disconnection moratoriums for the ill, as applicable,
and of the eligibility requirements and application procedure for
each.
(6) Payment arrangement. A payment arrangement is any
agreement between the DCTU and a customer that allows the customer
to pay the outstanding bill after its due date but before the due
date of the next bill.
(A) A payment arrangement may be established in person
or by telephone.
(B) If the DCTU issued a suspension or disconnection
notice before the payment arrangement was made, that suspension or
disconnection shall be suspended until after the due date for the
payment arrangement.
(C) If a customer does not fulfill the obligations
of the payment arrangement, the DCTU may suspend or disconnect service
after the later of the due date for the payment arrangement or the
suspension or disconnection date indicated in the notice in accordance
with §26.28 of this title (relating to Suspension or Disconnection
of Service), without issuing an additional notice.
(7) Deferred payment plan. A deferred payment plan
is any written agreement between the DCTU and a customer that allows
a customer to pay an outstanding bill in installments that extend
beyond the due date of the next bill.
(A) The terms of a deferred payment plan may be established
in person or by telephone, but must be put in writing to be effective.
(B) The DCTU shall offer a deferred payment plan to
any residential customer, including a guarantor of any residential
customer, who has expressed an inability to pay all of the bill, if
that customer has not been issued more than two suspension or disconnection
notices during the preceding 12 months.
(C) Every deferred payment plan shall provide that
the delinquent amount may be paid in equal installments over at least
three billing cycles.
(D) When a residential customer has received service
from its current DCTU for less than three months, the DCTU is not
required to offer a deferred payment plan if the residential customer
lacks:
(i) sufficient credit; or
(ii) a satisfactory history of payment for service
from a previous DCTU.
(E) Every deferred payment plan offered by a DCTU:
(i) shall state, immediately preceding the space provided
for the customer's signature and in boldface type no smaller than
14 point size, the following: "THIS IS A BINDING CONTRACT" followed
by "If you are not satisfied with this contract, or if agreement was
made by telephone and you feel this contract does not reflect your
understanding of that agreement, contact the utility immediately and
do not sign this contract. If you do not contact the utility, or if
you sign this agreement, you may give up your right to dispute the
amount due under the agreement except for the utility's failure or
refusal to comply with the terms of this agreement."
(I) In addition, if the customer and the DCTU representative
or agent meet in person, the DCTU representative shall read the preceding
statement to the customer.
(II) The DCTU shall provide information to the customer
as necessary in accordance with §26.26 of this title (relating
to Foreign Language Requirements) to make the preceding statement
understandable to the customer;
(ii) may include a 5.0% penalty for late payment but
shall not include a finance charge;
(iii) shall state the length of time covered by the
plan;
(iv) shall state the total amount to be paid;
(v) shall state the specific amount of each installment;
(vi) shall allow the DCTU to disconnect service if
a customer does not fulfill the terms of the deferred payment plan;
(vii) shall not refuse a customer participation in
such a program on the basis of race, nationality, religion, color,
sex, marital status, income level, or source of income and shall not
unreasonably refuse a customer participation in such a program on
the basis of geographic location;
(viii) shall be signed by the customer and a copy of
the signed plan shall be provided to the customer; and
Cont'd... |
