Sierra Club praises Public Utilities Commission for extending utility shutoff suspension for Hawaiʻi

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Marti Townsend, Director
Telephone: 808-372-1314
Email: marti.townsend@sierraclub.org

Sierra Club praises Public Utilities Commission for extending utility shutoff suspension for Hawaiʻi

Mandatory moratorium on utility shut-offs is extended but Sierra Club calls on Hawaiian Electric to do more for customers

HONOLULU, HAWAI‘I (Thursday, December 24) – On Tuesday, the Hawaiʻi Public Utilities Commission extended its mandate directing utilities to suspend disconnections due to non-payment through March 31, 2021. In response, the Director for the Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi, Marti Townsend, said:

“Our communities continue to struggle, as we enter the new year. Hawaiʻi still has one of the worst unemployment rates and we know the financial recovery will not happen overnight. The Public Utilities Commission has done what is right for Hawaiʻi’s communities and we are grateful for their thoughtful actions throughout the pandemic. The Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi hopes that Hawaiian Electric will take these protective measures even further and offer full bill forgiveness for customers that have lost income due to COVID-19. Because, really, a moratorium does little more than delay the inevitable for those families financially wrecked by the pandemic.”

Utilities, like Hawaiian Electric, face less risk from the COVID-19 crisis because they benefit from protections unavailable to other industries and provide essential services. Hawaiian Electric is privileged in that they are not only obligated to provide essential services but benefit from delivering these services—a privilege that should be respected, not abused. Hawaiian Electric took in $109 million in profits between April and September, more than the year before without a global crisis. Given this increase in profits and given that electricity is typically the largest financial burden on any household, Hawaiian Electric should put some of those profits towards offsetting the bills of its customers that are most in need.

The Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi has been calling on the Public Utilities Commission and Hawaiian Electric to extend the suspension on disconnections due to non-payment for the last couple of months. Over 1,100 residents and 30 local organizations supported their petition urging the decision makers to extend the moratorium and issue bill forgiveness.

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