Requires electric, gas, and water public utilities to disseminate outage information to customers through autodialed telephone call, text message, and electronic mail alert service.
The enactment of A2023 is anticipated to significantly improve customer experiences during outages by offering timely and detailed updates. This is particularly crucial during emergencies, ensuring that residents are well-informed about service disruptions that can affect their daily lives. By creating a formalized communication framework, the bill aims to minimize confusion and provide guidance during service outages, which is essential for public safety and well-being.
Assembly Bill A2023 mandates electric, gas, and water public utilities to develop and implement comprehensive notification systems for service outages. Specifically, utilities are required to provide information via autodialed telephone calls, text messages, and electronic mail alerts using customer contact information they have on record. This system aims to enhance the communication of service interruptions by informing customers about the location and estimated duration of outages, as well as providing contact information for utility assistance and emergency services.
While the bill is mainly focused on improving customer outreach, there may be concerns regarding the effectiveness of such communication methods. Critics might argue about the potential for technical failures in automated systems, or the risk of information overload if customers receive too many notifications. Additionally, the bill does not specify penalties for utilities that fail to comply with these new requirements, leading to potential debates about accountability in service delivery. The balance between providing sufficient information and avoiding unnecessary alarm will be a critical consideration as these changes are implemented.