NOPEC Natural Gas Opt In Public Hearing

Natural Gas Opt In Providing additional consumer protection for your residents. What is it? Every NOPEC Natural Gas Aggregation member community has a NOPEC Plan of Operations and Governance (POG) on file with the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO). This POG outlines the opt-out process for eligible customers in your community. It does not currently facilitate an efficient process for eligible customers that have opted-out to re-enroll with NOPEC. The newly amended POG outlines an opt-in process that makes it easier and quicker for customers to return to NOPEC. Why is it needed? We frequently hear reports of customers being lured away from NOPEC by for-profit energy companies that offer low introductory prices and incentives only to realize later they are paying a much higher rate. These customers want to return to NOPEC but are not aggregation eligible while under contract with another supplier. Under the current POG, individuals that have opted out are required to wait months or years for the next open NOPEC enrollment period to be eligible to rejoin the aggregation. As competition continues to increase in the energy market, this has become a more frequent occurrence. To help, NOPEC has created a newly amended POG that includes an “opt in” option, making it easier for residents and small businesses to come back to NOPEC with a simple phone call to our Customer Care Center. Ohio law requires your community to authorize the Opt-in Natural Gas Program and approve the amended POG before this change in process can be implemented in your community. Current POG Can take up to 2 years for returning customers to re-enroll after opting out. t Opt-Ou 2 Years Newly Amended POG Opt-Ou t 1-2 Returning customers can re-enroll months faster with one phone call.  Natural Gas Opt In Frequently Asked Questions Why should we approve an Opt-in Natural Gas Program and amend our Natural Gas POG? Your community’s current POG on file with the PUCO only outlines the option for customers to opt-out of the aggregation program. It does not provide a quick and easy way for eligible customers to change their minds and re-enroll. By approving an opt-in natural gas program and the newly amended POG outlining both opt-out and opt-in processes, it will be easier and quicker for residents and small businesses that have previously opted out to opt back in with a simple phone call. What is the benefit to our residents? Under the current POG, if an eligible customer opts out of NOPEC they are ineligible to rejoin the aggregation until the next open enrollment period which occurs every two years for natural gas. Depending on when the customer opted out, this means they may have to wait up to two years to be eligible to rejoin the aggregation. The newly amended POG allows eligible customers that have previously opted out to immediately re-enroll with NOPEC by calling our 24/7 Customer Care Center. Under the new POG, how quickly can residents re-enroll? Eligible customers that have previously opted out can re-enroll in NOPEC with a simple phone call to our 24/7 Customer Care Center. Any switch in supplier, however, can take up to one to two billing cycles for the utility to process. What specific changes were made to the new POG? The new POG states that NOPEC's Natural Gas Program includes both an opt-out and opt-in option; changes numbering and similar grammatical corrections to clarify which provisions of the POG apply to the opt-out program and to clarify which apply to the opt-in program. New paragraphs 2.5 and 2.6 have the most changes, including details of the new opt-in program. What does our community need to do to approve the new opt-in Natural Gas Program and amended POG? The approval process is easy. Your NOPEC Relationship Manager is available to help you throughout the process. After Council approves the opt-in natural gas program, the PUCO requires two public hearings to be held prior to formal approval. Your Relationship Manager will work with you to schedule and facilitate these public hearings. Once formally approved, NOPEC will file your community’s legislation approving the Opt-in Natural Gas Program and the new POG with the PUCO. More questions? Contact your Relationship Manager or email team@nopec.org.