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Court ruling throws Pennsylvania smart-meter plan into turmoil

The PUC and Peco Energy asked Pennsylvania’s highest court to throw out a decision that makes smart meters optional, not mandatory, for millions of customers.

Court ruling throws Pennsylvania smart-meter plan into turmoil

The PUC and Peco Energy asked Pennsylvania’s highest court to throw out a decision that makes smart meters optional, not mandatory, for millions of customers.

The statewide deployment of millions of wireless smart meters has been thrown into turmoil after a court invalidated Pennsylvania’s policy that requires electric utilities to install the devices on all homes and businesses.

The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission and Peco Energy this week asked the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to review a lower-court decision that invalidates a policy requiring the universal installment of smart meters. Several Peco customers objected to the installation of wireless devices on their homes, saying the radio frequency (RF) emissions made them ill.

State Commonwealth Court last month determined that the 12-year-old law requiring utilities to “furnish" smart meter technology by 2023 contained nothing to require “every customer to endure involuntary exposure” to radio emissions. The court’s opinion, written by Judge Ellen Ceisler, instead interpreted the law to support customer choice in the use of the smart-meter technology.

The PUC interpreted Act 129 of 2008, an energy-conservation law, as requiring smart meter technology for every customer without exception, and the utilities noted that the legislature had declined several attempts over the years to add an opt-out clause into the law.

(moar)

https://fusion.inquirer.com/business/peco-puc-pennsylvania-commonwealth-court-smart-meter-decision-20201111.html