A UTILITY BILL SURPRISE FOR SAN DIEGO CITY RESIDENTS

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

AUGUST 18, 2009. Water and sewer customers of the City of San Diego will get a surprise in their upcoming utility bills -- a very unusual notice from a local consumer group. The bill insert, from Utility Consumers' Action Network, will notify these customers that UCAN plans to begin challenging the City's water/sewer rates and policies in 2009. UCAN is poised to hire expert analysts and accountants to challenge the City's prices and policies, based upon customers' responses to the inserts.

The San Diego non-profit that fights for consumers on utility-related issues was authorized by a Superior Court judge to mail 280,000 informational fundraising inserts three times annually in City of San Diego water bills for five years, beginning in 2009.

This ruling came as a result of a legal settlement UCAN won in a class action lawsuit it filed against the city for overcharging San Diego residential ratepayers on their sewer bills. UCAN Executive Director Michael Shames says that all funds raised from the billing inserts will be used to hire independent experts to review the fairness of the city's water and sewer rate structure so mistakes can't happen -- again.

In March, 2004, Shames, learned that the City of San Diego had been systematically overcharging residential customers (and undercharging large commercial customers) on their sewer bills. When confronted, the city admited that it had applied the wrong rates, in violation of state law. After more than two years of litigation, the City and Shames agreed to a settlement that would return about $35 million to overcharged residential customers and would allow for the creation of independent oversight of City water and sewer operations. The latter may be the most valuable part of this settlement, as it gives City utility customers the ability to effectively question future rate increases.

The colorful inserts have been delivered to the City of San Diego and should begin arriving soon for City of San Diego water customers. UCAN was created in 1994 when it was given the right to place similar inserts in SDG&E's monthly bills. By 1995, UCAN had attracted over 60,000 members and had raised over $250,000 to challenge SDG&E's rate increases. Since its inception, UCAN estimates that it has saved San Diego ratepayers over $500 million in avoided rate increases sought by SDG&E. It has also intervened on behalf of individual SDG&E customers when they have disputes with the energy utility. UCAN plans to offer the same advocacy for City of San Diego water/sewer customers who join the consumer group.

Contact UCAN's Michael Shames or Charles Langley at 619-696-6966 for more information.