Additional flexibility is now built into a state policy intended to keep Missourians warm throughout winter.
The Cold Weather Rule prohibits utility companies from disconnecting a customer's heat service for nonpayment when temperatures are frigid from Nov. 1 through March 31.
Previously, disconnections were prevented for 24 hours if the temperature was below 32 degrees. A massive utility law passed by the Missouri Legislature earlier this year extended that time period to 72 hours.
As temperatures fluctuate this winter, so does energy consumption, which may impact utility costs.
Rich Germinder is an adviser to the Missouri Public Service Commission, the state agency that regulates corporate utility companies.
He said the Cold Weather Rule has been around since 1977, "making sure that individuals, if they're in arrearages and they're facing challenges, that they are not being disconnected during the highest periods of risk from a temperature perspective."
Similarly, a Hot Weather Rule prevents disconnection during periods of extreme heat in the summer.
The law also requires gas and electric utilities to provide customers who are behind on their bills thorough notices before shutting off their heat.
Only investor-owned utilities regulated by the state public service commission have to abide by the Cold Weather Rule. Cooperative and municipal utilities do not.
Customers who are facing disconnection during a period when the Cold Weather Rule is in effect are encouraged to contact the Missouri Public Service Commission hotline: 1-800-392-4211.
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