AEP HAS FOR SOME TIME SUPPORTED THE NOTION THAT METERING AND BILLING SERVICES SHOULD BE SUBJECT TO COMPETITION, AND SOONER RATHER THAN LATER.
AEP agrees with the evaluation contained in the State Corporation Commission's Report (1) that competitive metering and billing services can bring more benefits to consumers than the continued provision of these services in the traditional way, (2) that competition for electric metering and billing services can promote and advance the development of the competitive retail electricity market, and (3) that, unless metering and billing are put on a competitive basis, the retail competition in electric services already approved by the General Assembly could be impeded.
We believe that the Commission's report is a well-done first step toward defining the issues; other issues have to be addressed and are somewhat complex. The Company agrees generally with the recommendation for legislation to assure that the Commission has authority to implement competition in metering and billing services. However, any legislation should be based on the proposition that metering and billing will be subject to competition on a schedule compatible with the schedule for retail competition already mandated by the General Assembly.
We would like to make three summary points...
FIRST, COMPETITION IN METERING AND BILLING SERVICES IS IMPORTANT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF RETAIL COMPETITION, AND MERITS EARLY ATTENTION BY THE LEGISLATURE.
SECOND, LEGISLATION SHOULD MAKE CLEAR THAT COMPETITION WILL BE PERMITTED FOR METERING AND BILLING SERVICES AS EARLY AS IS REASONABLY PRACTICABLE.
FINALLY, AEP IS SUPPORTIVE OF A DIRECTIVE FROM THE LEGISLATURE IN THE YEAR 2000 TO IMPLEMENT ON THE BASIS OF ACCEPTABLE -- AND YET TO BE DEVELOPED -- CRITERIA... CRITERIA WHICH, AMONG OTHER THINGS, PROTECT AND FACILITATE THE LEGISLATIVELY-MANDATED PROGRESS TOWARD COMPETITION. (THE ISSUES TO BE DECIDED BY THE COMMISSION SHOULD BE THOSE RELATED TO IMPLEMENTATION, SIMILAR TO ITS IMPLEMENTATION RESPONSIBILITIES CONFERRED IN OTHER PARTS OF THE 1999 ACT.