CPUC Tells PG&E To Allow SmartMeter Opt-Outs

The California Public Utilities Commission issued an order Thursday that PG&E allow residents to opt out of the utility’s controversial SmartMeters.

“[I have asked PG&E to] bring to this commission a proposal or a series of proposals that will allow customers with an aversion to wireless devices the option of being metered without the use of wireless technology,” CPUC President Michael Peevey said in a statement before the commission's meeting Thursday in San Francisco, where dozens of people spoke about the health risks associated with the meters.

“This is fantastic news,” said Sandi Maurer, founder of the EMF Safety Network, who had filed a motion with the CPUC asking for a moratorium on the installation of the meters. 

The wireless digital meters have come under fire over the last year because of concerns about accuracy, security, privacy and health effects.

The meters use a combination of radio and microwaves to transmit data from the digital meter attached to your house to a transponder on a nearby telephone pole. That data is then transmitted via a cellular mesh network back to PG&E.

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Because of concerns about health related to electro-magnetic and radio frequencies, PG&E has said that it was  such as wired meters. PG&E has maintained, however, that the meters are safe and .

“It’s something we’ve actually been looking at,” PG&E spokesperson Katie Romans said of the CPUC’s order. “The order certainly advances the timeline.”

PG&E has until March 24 to return to the CPUC with a plan to implement the opt-out while continuing installation of the meters otherwise.

Romans said key questions that will be resolved by the March 24 plan are what options will be available to those who choose to opt out, what the cost impact of those options will be, and what PG&E will do about customers who have had the meters installed in their homes.

“We really will have to look at who we are talking about,” she said.

It is unlikely that customers will be allowed to keep their analog meters because they are in the process of being phased out by manufacturers, Romans said.

Additionally, PG&E still has a mandate to implement upgrades to the system and install a smart grid to allow for energy-efficiency programs. It is likely, then, that customers will be given a wired or digital option.

“How do we address these customers’ concerns while still ensuring them these environmental benefits?” Romans asked.

Peevey's statement said that PG&E’s proposal for “some form of opt-out for customers who object to these devices” could be achieved at a “reasonable cost” that will be paid for by the customers.

Statewide, PG&E has installed more than 7.65 million meters, with a goal of installing 10 million gas and electric meters by mid-2012.

As of March 4, there were 21,863 electric SmartMeters and 18,250 gas ones installed in Union City.

In Alameda County, there are 473,367 gas and 547,220 electric meters, leaving 107,083 to install.

In Contra Costa County, there are 348,584 gas SmartMeters and 408,721 electric, with 59,939 left to install, according to PG&E figures.

PG&E has maintained that when work has to be done on a meter, it is forced to install a new digital meter because the older analog ones are being phased out.

The opt-out proposal is not likely to resolve the issue entirely. For residents concerned about electro-magnetic and radio frequencies, the fact that the SmartMeter network will continue to exist in their towns, on their blocks and at their neighbors' homes means that their opting out doesn’t mean no exposure.

What is needed, said Maurer, is public education and a hearing on the effects of microwave radiation.

“I’m looking forward to a continuing conversation on consumer rights,” she said.

Dublin Patch Editor Erika Conner contributed to this report.