DENVER – The fate of a state consumer advocate for utility issues remains uncertain as lawmakers play a game of chicken over whether to disconnect the Office of Consumer Counsel.
It seems like a simple concept. The OCC is up for renewal, and in the past, the Legislature has gone ahead and continued the office. But this year, it has become locked in partisan politics, as lawmakers debate whether to keep telecommunications as part of its purview.
The Republican-controlled Senate on Monday advanced a measure to the Democrat-controlled House on a party-line vote that would continue the office without telecom. Shortly later in the day, a Senate committee killed a House bill that would have continued the OCC with telecom, leaving only the Senate bill on the table.
Democrats in the House could amend the Senate bill to include telecom, but that would setup a stalemate, forcing a conference committee to work on a compromise.
At stake is the entire office. If lawmakers are unable to advance a measure to the governor, the office would sunset. It is set to begin to close in July, though the actual process to close would take about a year.
It was created by legislation in 1984, operating under the Department of Regulatory Agencies. The OCC represents consumers on utility issues before the Public Utilities Commission.
Supporters of the office state that it has saved consumers an estimated $1.7 billion in rates over the last 30 years.
One concern is whether 911 rates would still be regulated without telecom being part of the mission. All telephone customers pay a surcharge to fund emergency services. La Plata County pays some of the highest fees in the state, at around $1.30 per month.
“For 30 years, Colorado’s consumer advocate has asked the tough questions to ensure that consumers are getting the value and service they deserve from our 911 system,” said Danny Katz, director of the consumer advocacy group CoPIRG, which analyzed the 911 fees. “They have the expertise and the experience. It doesn’t make sense to disconnect them from reviewing 911 fees.”
Sen. Ellen Roberts, R-Durango, opposed an amendment to the Senate bill that would have continued telecom as part of the office’s focus. She pointed out that just last year lawmakers passed sweeping reforms governing the telecom industry in Colorado. Also, 911 would still be regulated under the overall PUC, which is in the process of hiring another 911 manager.
“I have no desire to see telecom come back under the OCC,” Roberts said. “We’ve extensively dealt with telecommunications in other legislation just in the last year or two. There’s no reason to have redundancy in that.”
