Grant PUD notes increase in late payments

Grant Public Utility District has seen a large increase in overdue accounts since the COVID-19 pandemic started. 

In January of 2020, before the pandemic, Grant PUD had just 39 residential customers in the 90-days-or-more overdue category, amounting to $1,012 in outstanding payments, Chief Customer Officer Dave Churchman told commissioners at their March 23 meeting. 

In February of 2021, just over a year later, the numbers had gone up to 1,072 customers 90 days or more overdue, amounting to $286,395 in outstanding payments. 

Churchman said the percentage of customers past due is small enough that the utility is optimistic they will be able to “work with those impacted to get any past due payments resolved.”

Customer Service Supervisor Taffy Courteau urged customers who find themselves struggling to pay their Grant PUD bill to call customer service so a representative can help by setting up flexible payment plans or assist in applying for payment assistance.

“Since last March, Grant PUD has halted disconnects and paused any late payment charges for its core customers due to the pandemic. This decision was made by Grant PUD even before the governor’s proclamation prohibited those actions for residential customers,” a recap of the meeting published on the PUD’s website states.

“Courteau said because the current proclamation does not relieve a customer from their eventual obligation to pay their utility bill, the group is proactively reaching out to customers that are behind and helping them develop a plan that will allow them to work towards making their account current​,” the site states.

The utility can help those impacted by the pandemic to access energy assistance programs offered by outside agencies, as well as the utility’s Share the Warmth Program. In 2020 nearly 1,200 families received support with their electric bills.

In December of 2020, PUD commissioners discussed that although there is lost revenue in some areas due to the pandemic, there were increases in other revenue areas, such as selling wholesale electricity outside of Grant County, and that the district’s financial standing was fine.