After repeated pressure from groups protesting the rollout of smart meters in Northern California, the California Public Utilities Commission announced Thursday that it will allow PG&E customers to opt-out of the devices on their homes.
California PUC President Michael Peevey said he had spoken with the president of PG&E to allow customers who are averse to Smart Meters to have their electrical use recorded without the use of wireless technology.
“We’re directing PG&E to prepare a proposal to allow opt-out of the devices at a reasonable customer cost,” said Peevey at a CPUC meeting in San Francisco stacked heavily with an anti-Smart Meter crowd.
Peevey did not say how much customers would be charged to opt-out or how the money collected would be used. He said PG&E is expected to submit a proposal in two weeks, although it would take the commission time to develop an opt-out process.
The anti-Smart Meter crowd was largely unimpressed with the announcement. Although they had been calling for an opt-out option, some insisted that nothing short of a moratorium would be safe to the public.
“It’s a concession,” said Sandi Maurer, founder of the Sebastapol-based EMF Safety Network. “He’s tired of everyone showing up at these meetings.”
During more than an hour of public comments, the crowd berated the CPUC for failing to address what they said were serious public health issues related to smart meter use. PG&E has been replacing the older electrical meters throughout Northern California with wireless ones, which do not require door-to-door meter reading but instead pulse out meter use with a wireless signal. The company argues the devices will eventually lead to a more efficient use of electricity across the grid.
PG&E has recently started installing Smart Meters in San Francisco in the Richmond and Marina districts.
But from the very start, PG&E has encountered a public relations battle. Some 30 town across Northern California have put a moratorium on Smart Meter installation. Distrustful residents claim the devices will allow the company to spy on their electrical use, while others have disputed their new electrical bills claiming they’re being overcharged. The potential health impacts of smart meters has been the largest rallying cry, as dozens of people claiming “electromagnetic sensitivity” are linking the use of Smart Meters, cell phones, microwave ovens, wifi, and even lighting to a wide range of health problems for everything from dizziness to cancer.
Scientific studies, on the other hand, have not conclusively linked Smart Meters or other consumer grade electronics to any health impacts.
Nevertheless, the crowd at Thursday’s hearing called Smart Meters a “weapon of attack,” a “biohazard,” and a “violation of 14th Amendment rights.” They called PG&E a “bully” for foisting them on people, and asked for Peevey to step down off the commission.
“You don’t want to be known as the commission who put death boxes in front of everyone’s homes,” said one man.
One person rustled the crowd by claiming a connection between the San Bruno natural gas pipeline explosion to the installation of Smart Meters in the neighborhood.
Some said the opt-out was insufficient to protect people from their neighbors, who might allow Smart Meters on the building next door, or in apartment buildings where dozens may be installed in short distance from one another. They also said it wasn’t fair to make people pay for an opt-out.
“It’s a step in the right direction but it doesn’t go far enough,” said Maurer. “We’re not going to stop until we’ve got safety.”
Commissioners took the onslaught in stride, although Commissioner Timothy Simon eventually piped in over remarks of his he said were distorted at a recent press conference.
“We are all concerned about the health, safety, and welfare of rate payers,” he said. “Anyone who thinks contrary, I’m glad to meet them personally.”
An angry crowd shouted that they would take him up on the offer.
They installed it for free. Why would I need to pay to have it uninstalled.
I have 2 house in california
1 in Santa Rosa Ca and 1 in clearlake,
I have been refusing to answer the calls in the one in santa rosa, but the one in clearlake Iwas told I could not opt out.
This is dumb.Who has the right to tell home owners what they can and not do with their own property.And to add insult, to tell the customer they will need to pay,a reasonable fee. Why I did not ask for it.
Just called PG&E they will not remove my smart meter. They said this isn’t approved yet. UNREAL!
PG&E should have done a campaign explaining the Smart Meters before installing them. This would have allowed the public to understand what they would do & how they did it.
I do not want the smart meters you installed on my home. I do not trust them and want them removed for safety reasons and also for snooping reasons and also I do not want to pay for opt out. You put them there against my wishes and its up to you to take them out at your expense. I don’t need any more health concerns and believe you don’t care about what these smart meters can cause to a persons health. Take them out at no charge to the public.
Sincerely Carol Harris
First of all we did not ask for the SMART Meters, it was foisted upon us. Now they want to offer us an opt out option, but at a cost to the consumers. Hmmmm….the greedy gets greedier.
Why should be charge to take those dam
smart meters out ! when we didn’t want
them in the first place!!
once again pg&e trying to make the public
pay for their f—— up…
i want mine removed,why do i have to pay for i didn’t order it?
To pay to opt-out??? What are these people at the CPCU smoking? PG&E should be the one paying customers to opt-in. Smart meters are unproven devices. What is promoted bowadays as the smart grid has a very long way to go before it can be deemed reliable and cost-effective for the public. As it is now, smart grid is just a marketing buzzword to make money for companies promoting it at the expense of tax payers.
Isn’t CPCU supposed to protect customers? Why is it more than often siding with telephone and utility companies. We need to fire these CPCU tax-wasters and send them to stand in long unemployment lines for a while to learn their lessons. Maybe utility companies would hire them since they serve their interest anyway.
I was contacted 2 weeks ago by a company doing a SMART Meter survey that I believe was representing PG&E. Among the questions asked were:
What do I know about them?
How do I feel about them?
Would I want to opt out?
If yes, what would I consider a suitable MONTHLY opt out fee?
THE SURVEY WAS TALKING ABOUT A SET MONTHLY FEE FOR AS LONG AS YOU OPT OUT! I don’t know if this is to pay for meter readers or just a way to penalize you if you opt out.
My wife and I are empty-nesters. We use no more, nor less, electricity/gas now than before PGE installed the dumb meter. Yet, some months, year-over-year, our bills have DOUBLED. One month, when we were on vacation and had everything shut off, our bill went UP. To make us pay to have the darn thing removed is an insult, but I’d do it. Removal would probably pay for itself in a couple of days of HONEST billing.
i did send an email to the city of Antioch Feb. 24, 2010 to check my meter telling them that ever since they install that SMART meter that my power bill doubled up. up to now never did get a response. I am a resident of Antioch since 2003. NOW i want back my old power meter please.
First they ignore you.
Then they laugh at you.
Then they fight you.
They you Win.
These people challenging PG&E’s program who were called crazies at first are now looking awfully good.
I have demanded PG and E remove the Smart Meters on our electric panel and gas meter. They slapped them on the side of our house right otside my daughter’s bedroom. She’s 10 and her head is 6 inches from the Smart Meter. She will not be sleeping there until it is moved to the garage side of the house. PG & E says it needs us to pay 2K up front as an ‘Engineer’s Advance’. We’ll sue them if they don’t remove it/move it – we are pretty reasonable people, but there are some real potential health risks here (their data means nothing after studying how studies and statistics are put together) Massi and a fire danger. I can’t believe how bad this is and how massive it is. Even that the installers were ‘temp workers’ from Wellington. This is extremely intrusive, disruptive and wrong.ve agenda