Harrisburg, PA – February 3, 2025 – With a broad bipartisan vote of 41-7, the Pennsylvania Senate today approved Senate Bill 154, legislation sponsored by Senator Lisa M. Boscola (D-Northampton) to restore and improve The Responsible Utility Customer Protection Act (“Chapter 14”). The bill now moves to the House Consumer Protection, Technology & Utilities Committee for further consideration.
“Chapter 14 has long been a critical tool to protect responsible ratepayers from absorbing the costs of unpaid utility bills while ensuring vulnerable customers have safeguards during the termination process,” Boscola said. “With its expiration, we lost certainty in these protections. Today’s vote moves us one step closer to restoring that certainty.”
Chapter 14, the law which provided protections like the winter termination moratorium and payment arrangements to customers with unpaid utility bills, expired on December 31, 2024. The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) acted to extend these key protections until the legislature could act. SB154 reenacts these protections while strengthening consumer safeguards, including longer medical certificates, improved payment plans, and stronger notice requirements before shutoffs.
“This bill is the product of bipartisan cooperation and a shared commitment to protecting utility customers,” Boscola added. “I look forward to working with my colleagues in the House to get this across the finish line.”
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