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People's Counsel Proposes Retail Suppliers Be Required To Post Default Service Rates On Suppliers' Websites
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The Maryland Office of People’s Counsel has recommended that the Maryland PSC establish a workgroup to develop regulatory language implementing PUA § 7-315, which requires certain disclosures by retail suppliers, and empowers the PSC to adopt additional disclosures and/or prohibit the use of certain language by suppliers
OPC said that § 7-315, among other things, empowers the PSC to:
• Require or prohibit the use of specific language in a residential energy retailer’s marketing, disclosures, disclaimers, and legal documents
• Require retailers to post the terms and conditions of the residential services and products sold by the retailer
The term residential energy retailer used in § 7-315 is broad and includes:
(i) an electricity supplier that supplies electricity to residential retail electric customers;
(ii) a gas supplier that supplies gas to residential retail gas customers;
(iii) an energy salesperson; and
(iv) an energy vendor
As previously reported, PSC Staff has recommended that, for suppliers to comply with § 7-315, the Commission could allow residential energy retailers to post on their websites the existing "Contract Summary" already required by COMAR 20.53.07.08.B and 20.59.07.08.B, for each currently available offer.
See more details on Staff's recommendation here
However, OPC said that the existing COMAR provisions do not fully reflect the new protections provided by § 7-315, and proposed a work group process to further address new disclosure requirements
"[T]he Commission now has a fresh opportunity to modernize disclosure standards and address the persistent information asymmetries that have long disadvantaged residential customers," OPC said
"This new authority also presents an ideal moment to evaluate and redesign the framework for supplier transparency from the ground up. Enhanced disclosures will support informed consumer choice, facilitate supplier comparisons, and deter misleading marketing," OPC said
Among OPC's specific proposals, OPC said that residential energy retailers should post on their websites, in a consistent and easily understood format:
• The monthly rates charged for each product or service offered to residential customers
• The corresponding utility rates for equivalent services during the same time period
"These disclosures will address the limited information available on the prices charged by suppliers and the limited public historical price data that’s available about their products and services," OPC said
OPC also proposed that each residential energy retailer shall post on its website an FAQ section which shall include:
• Cancellation and early termination penalties
• Contract termination procedures
• Late payment fee amounts
• How to be placed on a utility’s "Do Not Transfer" list
• Information on the Commission’s customer dispute resolution process
• A statement that suppliers may not offer variable rates except for seasonal adjustments, which are limited to two per year
OPC proposed that the work group process be used to develop a report with recommended rule changes, followed by a formal rulemaking
PC68, PC 68
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Seeks Workgroup On New Marketing Disclosures, Prohibited Language
April 24, 2025
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Copyright 2025 EnergyChoiceMatters.com
Reporting by Paul Ring • ring@energychoicematters.com
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