Due to hundreds of customer complaints that Atlanta Gas Light(AGL) is over-billing, Georgia’s Public Service Commission (PSC)will vote on Jan. 5 to determine whether a hearing should be heldto examine re-regulating the state’s gas industry, the PSC toldNGI. If the commission decides a hearing is necessary, it will beheld Jan. 26 with a decision to come shortly thereafter.

“We’re trying to decide if we should step back into the market.Basically we’re voting to decide if we should call AGL in.” saidShawn Davis, a PSC spokesman.

He said that the controversy stems from a fixed demand chargeAGL installed when the state deregulated in November. This charge,which is part of the consumption charge on monthly bills, hasincreased the average consumer’s December bill 20-30% compared tothe same period last year. The commission thinks that the hike isunfair.

“It looks as though AGL is trying to collect as much as they canbefore customers leave the system,” said Stan Wise, the PSCcommissioner. “AGL is billing a year’s worth of charges over a fivemonth period and the charges are based on what a customer typicallyuses, not what they actually use.”

Davis said that the PSC has received hundreds of calls fromirate customers. “Here is one example. This customer paid an $800gas bill last month. Guess how many dekatherms he used? None.”

Davis continued to say that customers could switch to analternate supplier to solve the problem “but we don’t want peopleto feel forced to switch. We’d like to see them take their time inchoosing somebody else.”

Since AGL opened their market in November, 128,000 people out ofa 1.4 billion person pool have switched to one of 19 certifiedsuppliers in the state. “AGL is charging 90% of their previouscustomer base too much.” Davis said.

An AGL spokesman said that the company has not been notified ofany vote so he could not comment on this story. He did say that AGLhas received complaints in the Dec. billing period and that theutility was “doing its best to handle the complaints on acase-by-case basis.”

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