ERC studies removal of bill deposit collection for electricity consumers

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) is studying stopping the collection of bill deposits from electricity consumers by power distribution utilities.

At a press briefing in Pasig City, ERC chairperson and CEO Francis Saturnino Juan said that the power industry regulator is now consulting all stakeholders for the eventual cessation of bill deposit collection.

Juan cited Senator Sherwin Gatchalian’s proposed measure, the Anti-Bill Deposit Act, which seeks for the abolition of bill deposits and the refund of all bill deposits collected.

Under the Magna Carta for Residential Electricity Consumers, which was promulgated in 2004, residential consumers are required to pay bill deposits as a guarantee for their electricity consumption payments.

The ERC chief said his support for removing the bill deposit scheme sprang from a conversation with a DU that took over a franchise area, “but they did not require bill deposits from their customers.”

However, Juan said that the plan still needs to undergo a series of consultations to balance the interests of both consumers and DUs.

During the press briefing, ERC Commissioner Florensinda Digal expressed support for the abolition of bill deposit collection.

“I fully support that move. I am also for lessening the burden of consumers,” Digal said.

Meanwhile, ERC commissioners Amante Liberato, Paris Real, and Marko Romeo Fuentes also voiced their support for the initiative but said that the commission still needs to consult with all stakeholders to have a balanced decision on the matter.

In January this year, the Supreme Court upheld the authority of the ERC to require consumers to pay bill deposits —equivalent to one month’s average consumption— as a guarantee for their future bill payments to ensure the economic viability of DUs.