Your May PUC bill is going to be due on the 26th, but it’s going to look different, so don’t throw it away! Grand Marais Public Utilities Commission (PUC) Utility Administrative Specialist Jan Smith said, “My biggest fear is that some people are going to throw their first bill away because it’s coming in an envelope.”
The new format will give customers more information in a clearer format and explain things that they would otherwise be asking the PUC to help them understand, such as the fact that each customer is charged a basic rate for water, sewer, and electric service, with usage charges added on top of that. It will indicate most recent and upcoming meter reading dates and indicate in red ink how much extra the bill would be if it were paid after the 26th of the month.
The new bill will have a bar graph showing individual electric usage over the last 12 months. This will be helpful, for example, in seeing how much usage has been fluctuating from season to season.
The new bill will also have room for messages, such as notifications regarding energy efficient appliance rebates or CFL light bulb giveaways. Smith said they also plan to let customers know when community events such as the Grand Marais Arts Festival or the Dragon Boat Festival are coming up.
The new bill will arrive in an envelope on 8½x11-inch paper. The cost “will be a little higher,” according to Smith, because they will need to stuff the envelopes and envelopes cost more to mail than postcards. She hopes they will start bar coding the envelopes, which will eliminate the time they have been spending sorting the bills into various zip codes. About 750 bills are sent to Grand Marais addresses each month, but another 200 to 250 are sent other places.
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