65- 407 C.M.R. ch. 815, § 9
A utility shall continue to serve a customer who does not pay an account balance in full if the customer agrees to enter a payment arrangement for the account balance and agrees to pay each future bill for service on or before the due date of the bill until the payment arrangement is completed. A payment arrangement may involve a single or multiple payments.
A utility shall mail or deliver to the customer a written confirmation of a payment arrangement that requires two or more payments within three business days after a payment arrangement is established. The written confirmation shall:
If a utility does not mail or deliver a written confirmation of a payment arrangement to the customer within three business days after a payment arrangement is agreed to, the utility cannot disconnect the customer for failure to comply with the payment arrangement. A utility may either attempt personal contact to negotiate a new payment arrangement or issue a 14-day disconnection notice for residential customers or a 7-day notice for non-residential customers according to Section 10(D).
Any agreement permitting installment payments on an account balance for non-basic service must be separate from a payment arrangement for basic service.
Utilities shall adopt written guidelines which describe the types of payment arrangements offered by that utility by April 16, 2008, and shall modify the guidelines anytime a change is made. Utilities shall submit a copy of the guidelines to the CASD within 30 days of the guideline's completion or modification.
Utilities must establish payment arrangements that take into consideration the individual customer's unique circumstances and that are most likely to result in customers becoming current with their bills and retaining their utility service, including, but not limited to, regular payment arrangements, Special Payment Arrangements during the winter period, annualized budget payment plans, and levelized payment arrangements. A levelized payment arrangement may periodically be adjusted to account for changes in the estimated usage. In these situations, an arrangement cannot be adjusted more than four times a year. If a customer and the utility cannot agree on the terms of a payment arrangement, including a customer's claim that the customer cannot afford to pay any amount towards the arrearage, the utility must refer the customer to the CASD for assistance.
In determining if a particular arrangement is reasonable, the utility must take into account:
The utility must make every reasonable attempt to negotiate a payment arrangement that is likely to prevent disconnection and reduce the amount overdue to zero. If a utility and a customer cannot agree on the terms of a payment arrangement, the utility must refer the customer to the CASD and the CASD will establish a reasonable payment arrangement.
When a customer informs a utility that the customer cannot pay a bill and the customer is in imminent threat of disconnection, the utility must provide the customer with information regarding its LIAP (if applicable), as well as other sources of financial assistance including, but not limited to, 211, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Community Action Agencies, and local Town or City government.
The utility may, but is not required to, offer a second payment arrangement to a customer who is in default of a first payment arrangement. If the first payment arrangement is a Special Payment Arrangement, the utility shall offer at least one additional payment arrangement during the non-winter period.
The utility shall offer any customer eligible to participate in the utility's LIAP any existing no-cost energy conservation measures, including, but not limited to, any energy audit, offered by the utility, as a condition of the second payment arrangement. Customers shall accept the measures to the extent they have the authority to do so.
Between November 1 and April 1, utilities must offer customers the opportunity to enter into a Special Payment Arrangement, provided that the first payment will be due prior to April 15, when such an arrangement is the best option for keeping the customer's bills affordable during the winter and summer period and ensuring that the customer is not disconnected.
In any case, the standardized payment plan should be designed to pay any arrearage incurred prior to entering the Special Payment Arrangement or as a result of the level monthly payments required by the Special Payment Arrangement by the following November 1. As noted in Sections 9(F)(5) (A&B) above, a utility may extend a Special Payment Arrangement beyond the following November 1 when individual customer circumstances warrant.
Utilities must offer non-residential customers payment arrangements that take into consideration the customer's unique circumstances and that are most likely to result in the customer becoming current with their bills and retaining their utility service. In determining if a particular arrangement is reasonable, the utility must take into account:
The utility must make every reasonable attempt to negotiate a payment arrangement that is likely to prevent disconnection and reduce the amount overdue to zero. If a utility and a customer cannot agree on the terms of a payment arrangement, the utility must refer the customer to the CASD and the CASD will establish a reasonable payment arrangement.
65- 407 C.M.R. ch. 815, § 9