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Home My WebLink About20070927Staff to Avista 1-19.pdfDONOVAN E. WALKER DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL IDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION PO BOX 83720 BOISE, IDAHO 83720-0074 (208) 334-0357 IDAHO BAR NO. 5921 RECE!Vr~c; ZOill SEP 21 PN I: 5 , po, "' l.r) n j:( ! \L)FXiiJ C '"" '.:;."",~ UTiLITIES COiv\IJ1I~:jIU( Street Address for Express Mail: 472 W. WASHINGTON BOISE, IDAHO 83702-5983 Attorney for the Commission Staff BEFORE THE IDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION OF AVISTA CORPORATION FOR AUTHORITY TO IMPLEMENT A PILOT PROGRAM FOR REMOTE DISCONNECTS AND RECONNECTS CASE NO. A VU-07- FIRST PRODUCTION REQUEST OF THE COMMISSION STAFF TO VISTA CORPORATION The Staff of the Idaho Public Utilities Commission, by and through it Attorney of Record Donovan E. Walker, Deputy Attorney General, requests that Avista Corporation (Company; A vista) provide the following documents and infonnation as soon as possible, but no later than FRIDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2007. The Company is reminded that responses pursuant to Commission Rules of Procedure must include the name and phone number of the person preparing the document, and the name, location and phone number of the record holder. Reference IDAPA 31.01.01.228. This Production Request is to be considered as continuing, and A vista is requested to provide, by way of supplementary responses, additional documents that it or any person acting on its behalf may later obtain that will augment the documents produced. FIRST PRODUCTION REQUEST TO A VISTA SEPTEMBER 27, 2007 Please provide answers to each question; supporting workpapers that provide detail or are the source of infonnation used in calculations; the name and telephone number of the person preparing the documents; and the name, location and telephone number of the record holder. For each item, please indicate the name of the person(s) preparing the answers, along with the job title of such person(s) and the witness who can sponsor the answer at hearing. REQUEST NO.1: Is the remote disconnect/reconnect pilot directed to residential customers only? REQUEST NO.2: What is the specific criteria the Company will use to select participants for the pilot program? For example, does the Company intend to target customers whose payments are routinely past due, customers who have been assessed multiple field collection charges, and/or customers who have been disconnected multiple times? REQUEST NO.3: Please define "multiple disconnects" and "located in a rural area" as referenced on page 4 ofthe Application? Will customers located in a rural area who have good credit with the Company be selected for the pilot? REQUEST NO.4: Please provide examples of situations where an "A vista employee may be 'at risk'" as stated on page 4 of the Application? REQUEST NO.5: Does the Company intend to provide written notice to the customers selected for this pilot? If so, please provide a copy of the notice. REQUEST NO.6: How and at what point will the written notice be provided? For example, will the notice be provided by mail before or after the device has been installed? REQUEST NO.7: Does the Company intend to verify personal contact infonnation for all the customers in the pilot? FIRST PRODUCTION REQUEST TO A VISTA SEPTEMBER 27, 2007 REQUEST NO.8: There appear to be actions the customer needs to take once service is restored. What type of education will the Company provide to be sure customers understand what they need to do to complete reconnection of service? REQUEST NO.9: The remote disconnect equipment literature provided with the Company s application indicates that a manual reset switch is optional. Why has the Company opted to use the manual reset switch? REQUEST NO. 10: What is the failure rate for the devices the Company anticipates using? REQUEST NO. 11: What action will the Company take if the device does fail, i. disconnect or reconnect cannot be perfonned remotely? REQUEST NO. 12: Please provide the unit cost for both the Nighthawk and TW ACS remote disconnect equipment. REQUEST NO. 13: What is the estimated total cost of the pilot program? REQUEST NO. 14: Will the customer be able to distinguish whether his power is off due to the remote disconnection, a general power outage, or a blown fuse/tripped circuit breaker? Is there an indicator light on the remote switch collar that can serve this function? Could there be? Does this impact the cost of the units? REQUEST NO. 15: The door hanger left by the Company when it disconnects in person is a very handy source of the infonnation needed to restore service, especially for those who tend to misplace mailed notices. Would it be possible to provide a sticker or magnet that can be mounted, essentially pennanentlY' on the circuit panel or meter base that has the number to call to get this infonnation? FIRST PRODUCTION REQUEST TO A VISTA SEPTEMBER 27, 2007 REQUEST NO. 16: The proposed procedures eliminate the opportunity for the customer to pay the bill to the service representative to avoid disconnection. Will participants in the pilot program have near-by pay stations and/or other means of paying the bill to adequately replace this in-person visit? How will customers be infonned of the payment options available to them? REQUEST NO. 17: What is the anticipated maximum interval between customer satisfaction of conditions necessary to restore service and actual service restoration for a participant in the pilot program, and how would that compare to a customer not participating in the pilot program. REQUEST NO. 18: Please describe any differences between the notice process used for participants and that used for non-participants. If available, a process flowchart comparing the process for participants and non-participants would be appreciated. REQUEST NO. 19: Please clarify which steps in the process diagrams attached to the application will be electronically automated and require no human action, which are human initiated or require minor human contributions, but are primarily accomplished and/or transmitted electronically, and those that are substantially dependent upon human or non-electronic efforts. DATED at Boise, Idaho, this ~fhay of September 2007. g1(l/ Deputy Attorney General Technical Staff: Nancy Hylton Wayne Hart i:urnisc:prodreq/avueO7.9dwnhwh prod req l.doc FIRST PRODUCTION REQUEST TO AVISTA SEPTEMBER 27, 2007 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE HEREBY CERTIFY THAT I HAVE THIS 27TH DAY OF SEPTEMBER 2007 SERVED THE FOREGOING FIRST PRODUCTION REQUEST OF THE COMMISSION STAFF TO AVISTA CORPORATION, IN CASE NO. AVU-07- BY MAILING A COpy THEREOF, POSTAGE PREPAID , TO THE FOLLOWING: DAVID J. MEYER VICE PRESIDENT AND CHIEF COUNSEL A VISTA CORPORATION PO BOX 3727 SPOKANE W A 99220 MAIL: david.meyer~avistacorp.com KELLY NORWOOD VICE PRESIDENT - STATE & FED. REG. A VISTA UTILITIES PO BOX 3727 SPOKANE W A 99220 MAIL: kelly.norwood~avistacorp.com SECRET~.f~ CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE