The North County Times' writer Eic Wolf said SDG&E "will roll out a new look for its bills starting September 7" for the purpose of adding more summary information at the beginning of the bill, adding graphics, and increasing the size of the paper for its bills.  UCAN Executive Director Michael Shames commented on the upcoming bill format change.  Currently, this staff member feels the public needs more than 10-10 eyesight, a Ph. D., a law degree specializing in regulatory issues and company tariffs; the public needs a workshop training on all aspects of utility company bills.  How many of us know how to, or have the time to log our gas and electric use every month?  It remains to be seen whether or not making something bigger will make it easier to interpret. 

Michael Shames said "the new billing format is greatly improved", but noted that "now you only need a master's in linguistics".  Please keep in mind that Michael Shames is the guru consumer advocate and expert in this industry and has been studying bills for over 25 years.  I only hope that his knowledge and our UCAN staff will be instrumental in helping consumers understand all aspects of their bills; along with the outreach that SDG&E plans to conduct.  For now, I see something else to learn in order to prevent my bills from reaching even more astromical heights.

UPDATE: Check out the attached sample new bill to get a sneak peak at the new format.