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PUC Won’t Halt Oncor Smart Meter Conversion
The Texas Public Utility Commission decided Thursday to allow electric provider Oncor to continue to install the digital meters that some area residents blame for steep increases in monthly electric bills.
Reporter: By David Williams Email Address: david.williams@kwtx.com |
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100 Comments 
AUSTIN (March 4, 2010)—Despite a request from a Central Texas lawmaker to declare a moratorium on the installation of digital electric meters that dozens of area residents say are behind sharp increases in monthly bills, the Texas Public Utility Commission decided Thursday to allow electric provider to continue with the conversion to the so-called smart meters.
“The commission is not going to take that measure at this time,” said PUC spokesman Terry Hadley.
“They are confident the additional testing will suffice.
“However, I want to emphasize the commission still has the issue on the table. If there are additional problems that crop up, certainly the commission has the ability to halt the process,” Hadley said.
The PUC did say, however, that it would allow third-party testers to verify the accuracy of the meters.
"We understand the anger. Anybody that gets a high electric bill is not happy," Hadley said.
State Sen. Troy Fraser, R-Horseshoe Bay, wrote a letter to the commission’s chairman earlier this week asking the commission to halt Oncor’s conversion until independent tests confirm that the meters provide an accurate reading of electric usage.
Fraser earlier talked to Oncor about conducting side-by-side tests of the new digital meters and the older analog meters to ensure that readings are accurate after a number of residents complained that their electric bills jumped when the new meters were installed.
Oncor agreed to the tests, but says the meters are accurate and says the increase in electric bills was the result of unusually cold winter weather.
Fraser asked the PUC to facilitate the testing; to require a complete independent test of software systems associated with the meters; to require an independent test of the meter of any customer who requests testing, and to direct enough side-by-side installations for a comparison of the accuracy of the old and new meters.
"If my constituents are upset, I'm upset,” Fraser said Wednesday.
“We've got to make sure we know why the high bills are occurring. If it's a problem with the meters, we're going to have to address that,” he said.
Latest Comments
if the new meter sends out a signal and it has to be powered are we as the consumers paying for it if so WHY? IF I PAY FOR THE SERVICE IT BELONGS TO ME.... ONCE IT COMES THROUGH THE METER IT IS BELONGES TO ME.......
am i going to be charged when that meter go through the segment check ever time... If so why am i being charged for that. HOW DO I READ THE METER?
ive had a smart meter since before the winter. my bill increased less than $10 from november to december to january. its because i CONSERVE my electricity use. oncors meters are fine...customers are just using the smart meters to blame for their own high usage from the unusually cold weather this winter. and your electric company cannot help you in the slightest...TXU, STARTEX, GREEN MOUNTAIN, STREAM, RELIANT...it doesnt matter. they all accept the readings from the TDSP as accurate. btw...switching your electric company wont help you if your usage is high. call your REP and get a lower rate if you can...ultimately, if you want to get away from oncor, youll have to move to a different service area...bad thing is, most deregulated service areas in texas are already upgrading to smart meters. the only exception is TNMP (lewisville). yet. just pay your bill, and stop turning your heater above 68.
