Shekarchi Urges RI Energy Not to Shut Off Federal Workers’ Energy UPDATED

Shekarchi Urges RI Energy Not to Shut Off Federal Workers’ Energy UPDATED

Rhode Island House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi is calling on Rhode Island Energy to provide relief to Rhode Island households impacted by the government shutdown by agreeing not to impose utility shutoffs and through payment holds without interest or penalty, mirroring a similar program in Massachusetts.

 

The federal shutdown has gone on for 35 days. About 750,000 workers have been impacted nationally.

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“The distress and hardship being felt by Rhode Island federal civil servants should not be compounded by the fear of losing access to basic services like heat and electricity,” said Shekarchi (D-Dist. 23, Warwick) in letters sent today to J. Gregory Cornett, president of Rhode Island, and Ronald T. Gerwatowski, chair of the Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission.

 

In his letter to Rhode Island Energy, Shekarchi calls on the utility to mirror the payment assistance program offered by National Grid to Massachusetts federal workers who are not being paid during the government shutdown. National Grid has made federal employees, government contractors and active military personnel eligible for a payment hold on their accounts, which will not be shut off and will not accrue interest or penalties during the shutdown.

 

Shekarchi is also urging the Public Utilities Commission to “utilize the full extent of its regulatory authority to impose similar protections.”

 

RI Energy Responds

In Response to Shekarchi's letter, Michael Dalo, manager of external communications for RIE, wrote in an email to GoLocal, "We appreciate Speaker Shekarchi’s outreach and concern for Rhode Islanders impacted by the federal government shutdown. We are currently reviewing the proposal with the RI Public Utilities Commission and evaluating how we can further support our customers during this time."

"In the meantime, we encourage any customer experiencing financial hardship to visit our website at RIEnergy.com/toolkit to learn more about the assistance programs and resources currently available. Our goal is to ensure that all customers have access to the support they need to maintain essential utility services," Dalo added.

 

UPDATED: 4:57 PM