OAR 860-037-0120: Adjustment of Bills

(1) Except as provided in sections (4) and (5) of this rule, if a wastewater utility determines that a current or former customer of the utility was under-billed or over-billed for a service provided by the wastewater utility under rate schedules or tariffs in effect when the service was provided: (a) The wastewater utility may issue a bill to collect amounts previously under-billed during the 12-month period ending on the date on which the customer or former customer was last under-billed. The wastewater utility may not bill for services provided more than two years before the date the utility discovered the under-billing. (b) The wastewater utility must issue a refund or bill credit for amounts previously over-billed during the 12-month period ending on the date on which the customer or former customer was last over-billed. The wastewater utility is not required to refund amounts which were received more than three years before the date the wastewater utility discovered the over-billing. (c) Notwithstanding subsection (1)(a) of this rule, if the under-billing was the result of fraud, tampering, diversion, theft, misinformation, false identification, or other unlawful conduct on the part of the customer or former customer of the wastewater utility, the wastewater utility may collect full payment for any amount owed without limitation. (2) When a wastewater utility issues a bill to collect under-billed amounts, a current or former customer of a wastewater utility may enter into a time-payment agreement as provided in OAR 860-037-0110. If the wastewater utility customer is already on a time-payment plan, the utility must offer to renegotiate the payment plan to include the under-billing error. If the customer and wastewater utility cannot agree upon payment terms, the Commission will establish terms and conditions to govern the customers’ obligation. This section does not apply if the corrected billing is the result of the conditions listed in subsection (1)(c). (3) When a wastewater utility requires payment for amounts previously under-billed, the utility must provide a written notice that explains: (a) The circumstance and time period of the under-billing; (b) The corrected bill amount and the amount of the necessary adjustment, (c) The Commission’s consumer complaint process; and (d) The right for a current or former customer to enter into a time-payment agreement with the wastewater utility. (4) A billing adjustment is not required if a wastewater meter registers less than a two percent error under conditions of normal operation. (5) The wastewater utility may waive rebilling or issuing a refund check when the costs make such action uneconomical.