AUGUSTA (NEWS CENTER Maine) -- The Maine Public Utilities Commission on Wednesday approved a new investigation to look into Central Maine Power’s return on equity.
A group of CMP customers say the power company is making excessive returns on investment, beyond what is allowed by the Maine Public Utilities Commission. Two other requests by that group were dismissed, leading up to Wednesday's approval which included an order that the company file a rate case by October 15, 2018.
This is separate from the audit approved in March to investigate the company’s billing practices, after customers filed complaints that their bills went up, some even doubling, after the October 2017 wind storm. That investigation expanded two weeks ago to include a closer look at CMP’s customer communications, in addition to metering and billing complaints.
In May, the PUC hired an independent consultant to conduct the audit. An initial report is due in October, and a PUC official says a decision is expected a few months after that.
CMP INVESTIGATION TIMELINE
October 2017
A wind storm causes the highest number of power outages in Central Maine Power’s history.
November 2017 – January 2018
Customers see their bills increase significantly and file complaints to the Maine Public Utilities Commission.
March 2018
The Maine Public Utilities Commission votes to approve an audit into CMP’s billing practices.
CMP responded, saying it welcomed the investigation. And if problems are revealed, CMP said they will be fixed, and affected customers will be "made whole."
CMP customers learned they could ultimately pay the cost of the state's investigation into the power company, according to an order filed by the State of Maine Public Utilities Commission.
May 2018
The Maine PUC hired an independent consultant to conduct the audit. The initial report is due in October, and the PUC says a decision could be made a few months after that.
April 2018
CMP speaks to the media for the first time about the investigation. CMP’s President and CEO, Doug Herling, says CMP has received nearly 1,600 complaints from customers about higher bills. He says so far the company has investigated two-thirds of them and has found nothing on the company’s end that would lead to inaccurate bills. He said an 18-percent increase in the price of the standard offer and increased usage on the part of the customers are to blame in the cases they’ve investigated.
July 2018
PUC expands initial investigation to include customer service practices of CMP. Two weeks later, the PUC approves a new investigation of CMP’s return on equity, and orders CMP to file a rate case by October 15, 2018.
Several law firms join forces in announcing plans to file a class action lawsuit on behalf of hundreds of thousands of customers who say they were over charged by Central Maine Power.
