Maine court sustains challenge to smart meter project, partially

The Maine Supreme Judicial Court has issued an opinion that calls into question the Maine Public Utilities Commission's dismissal of a complaint against a utility regarding its use of smart-meter technology.  With over 600,000 smart meters already installed, what the court ruling means is unclear.

In 2010, the Commission approved a proposal by Central Maine Power Company (CMP) to install smart meters on its customers' sites.  The project, which CMP called Advanced Metering Infrastructure, entailed replacing existing customer meters with "smart meters" capable of transmitting customer usage data back to the utility using radio frequency signals.

The project triggered a series of customer complaints raising concerns about the health and safety of smart-meter technology associated with the AMI project, focusing on the health effects of RF radiation emitted by the wireless smart meters and the technology’s potential to violate individuals’ privacy.  Customers also complained about the lack of an opt-out provision allowing customers to choose to retain their existing meters.

In 2011, the Commission ordered CMP to provide two alternatives for customers who choose not to have the standard wireless smart meter installed on their premises: either a standard meter, or a smart meter set to receive-only mode.  Under the Commission's order, customers opting out would pay an extra fee.

In response, nineteen CMP customers filed a complaint against both CMP and the Commission, challenging the opt-out fee.  The Commission dismissed that complaint, finding that it had considered and resolved the issues raised in the complaint by ordering CMP to allow customers to opt out.  This dismissal triggered an appeal by the customers to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court.

In the court's opinion issued last week, Friedman v. Public Utilities Commission, the court agreed with the customer complainants that the Commission should not have dismissed the portion of the complaint against CMP addressing health and safety issues.

In reaching this conclusion, the court noted that one of the Commission’s core regulatory responsibilities is to ensure that public utilities provide “safe, reasonable and adequate service” to customers.  The court found that the Commission had explicitly declined to decide "that smart meter technology is not a credible threat to the health and safety of CMP’s customers".  On that sole ground, the court vacated the portion of the Commission’s dismissal of the customer complaint that was directed at CMP and addressed health and safety concerns.

So what does the court's ruling mean in practical terms? CMP has already installed about 600,000 smart meters across its service territory, and has only about 2,000 smart meters left to install. The Commission is undoubtedly reviewing the court's order and has scheduled a deliberative session for next Tuesday, July 24, at 10:00 a.m.

February 1, 2011 - smart meters questioned by some

Smart meters are being rolled out by utilities across the country.  Regulators including FERC and state PUCs have approved their installation based on perceived benefits such as improved customer service, enhanced storm restoration efforts, and reduced costs for both ratepayers and utilities.  Yet a number of challenges have been lodged against smart meter programs.  For example, after ratepayer complaints and requests for investigation, the Maine PUC has opened an investigation into one utility's implementation of smart metering.  Concerns include privacy, alleged harmful effects of electromagnetic radiation, and the loss of meter-reading jobs.

The New York Times recently ran an interesting look at some of the opposition in California and Maine, noting that some Tea Party activists are joining the fray, as well as others concerned about health effects despite several studies concluding that smart meters pose no threat to human health.

What will end up happening with smart meter programs?  Will proponents' arguments outweigh the opposition's concerns?

January 5, 2011 - Maine PUC opens smart meter investigation

Smart grid infrastructure has the potential to not only reduce the cost of electricity to consumers, but also to enable society to use energy more wisely.  Smart meter installation programs have been approved by FERC, and are moving forward in a number of utilities' service territories.  In Maine, Central Maine Power's $192 million Automated Metering Infrastructure (AMI) program was originally approved by the Maine Public Utilities Commission in February 2010 (Docket Number 2007-215).  The PUC approved the AMI program based on its benefits, including improving customer service, enhancing storm restoration efforts, and reducing both ratepayer and utility costs.  CMP secured a federal Department of Energy (DOE) grant to fund about half the cost of the AMI program.  Smart meters are now being installed in homes and businesses in CMP's territory, with over 50,000 already deployed in the field out of about 620,000 total meters to be installed.

Yet when it comes to the details of the rollout, concerns have been raised including the alleged lack of an opt-out for ratepayers who do not wish to be metered through smart meters.  Two separate ten-person complaints were filed to the PUC requesting an investigation of the AMI program (Docket Numbers 2010-345, and 2010-389).  This week, the Maine PUC voted unanimously to open an investigation of the issues raised, including both whether there truly is no opt-out, as well as whether such a lack of an opt-out would be “unreasonable, insufficient or unjustly discriminatory”.  The investigation may also include an evaluation of the availability and technical feasibility of alternative metering technologies that don't rely on wireless communications, as well as the cost implications of any such alternatives.

The formal order opening investigation should be issued shortly, with opportunities for public comment and participation.  Will the PUC find that the smart metering program is being implemented properly?  If smart metering brings public benefits to ratepayers, what should utilities do to educate the public about these benefits?