Regulators have ordered FirstEnergy Corp. to restore steeply discounted rates for all-electric homes, eliminated last year after decades of promoting electric heating.
The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio took the unprecedented action Wednesday after weeks of protests from homeowners and an order from Gov. Ted Strickland.
More than 100,000 families that heat with electricity have seen enormous increases in monthly bills this winter after the discounts were wiped out. Hundreds of enraged FirstEnergy customers have turned out to complain at a half-dozen meetings sponsored by mayors and lawmakers.
The PUCO ruling does not explicitly require FirstEnergy to refund the millions of dollars it has collected this winter under the higher rates. That may be impossible to order since the company billed customers with rates that the PUCO approved last year.
Also, because the order sets the rates back to what they were in December 2008, it does not give any relief to homeowners who bought their all-electric houses this year or last.
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Article courtesy cleveland.com
