The Vermont Statutes Online
The Statutes below include the actions of the 2025 session of the General Assembly.
NOTE: The Vermont Statutes Online is an unofficial copy of the Vermont Statutes Annotated that is provided as a convenience.
Subchapter
001
:
GENERAL POWERS
(Cite as: 30 V.S.A. § 209c)
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§ 209c. Electricity affordability program
(a) The Public Utility Commission shall design a proposed electricity affordability program
in the form of draft legislation. The program shall be developed with the aid of an
electricity affordability program collaborative. The collaborative, composed of representatives
from the electric utilities, residential customers, consumer representatives, low-income
program representatives, representatives from programs for elders, the Department
of Public Service, the Agency of Human Services, and other stakeholders identified
by the Commission, shall aid in the development of an electricity affordability program,
as well as requirements for the implementation and funding of the program. The proposed
electricity affordability program will be presented to the Vermont General Assembly
in the form of draft legislation for consideration in January 2007.
(b) The proposed electricity affordability program shall provide assistance in the payment
of electricity bills for eligible low-income residential customers served by electric
companies subject to the jurisdiction of the Commission.
(c) In developing the electricity affordability program, the Commission shall review the
successes and administrative burdens of similar programs in operation in other states
and consider the following goals, which shall be afforded equal weight in formulating
the program:
(1) the need to provide payment assistance to low-income customers at and below 150 percent
of the federal poverty level;
(2) the need for automatic screening and enrollment methods of eligible customers by means
of information obtained from existing means-tested financial assistance programs administered
by other Vermont agencies, such as food stamps, Medicaid, LIHEAP, or TANF; and
(3) the need to design a program that is funded by all customer classes in an equitable
and reasonable manner and that results in the reimbursement of net incremental costs
incurred by electric utilities to implement the program, taking into consideration
the benefits as well as the costs. (Added 2005, No. 208 (Adj. Sess.), § 10a; amended 2013, No. 96 (Adj. Sess.), § 191.)