69-3-221. Public utility errors in billing customers, MCA

Montana Code Annotated 2017

TITLE 69. PUBLIC UTILITIES AND CARRIERS

CHAPTER 3. REGULATION OF UTILITIES

Part 2. Requirements for Public Utilities

Public Utility Errors In Billing Customers

69-3-221. Public utility errors in billing customers. (1) For the purposes of this section:

(a) "public utility" does not include a municipal utility as defined in chapter 7 of this title;

(b) a "customer billing error":

(i) includes any bill issued by the utility that is not designated as an estimated bill and that understates the amount owed by the customer;

(ii) includes a utility's failure to bill a customer for service provided that would be billed to the customer under the utility's normal billing practices;

(iii) excludes errors that result from the theft of service by the customer;

(iv) excludes errors involving a utility's industrial class customers; and

(v) excludes errors incurred in the billing of long-distance services by a telecommunications utility.

(2) Whenever a public utility discovers a customer billing error, the utility may submit a bill to the customer for a period not to exceed the 6 months preceding the date the billing error is discovered.

(3) The commission may adopt rules to implement subsections (1) and (2).

History: En. Secs. 1, 2, Ch. 587, L. 1985.