Gov. Janet Mills (D) signed into law this past Thursday a bill that requires internet providers to prorate for customers who cancel their services midway through their billing cycle, as well as issue rebates to customers who experience prolonged outages.
Maine had previously enacted a law requiring cable companies to prorate their customers’ final bills, which was set to go into effect in September of 2020. The implementation of the law was delayed, however, when Spectrum took the measure to court claiming that it was preempted by federal law.
After an initial lower court victory for Spectrum, the First Circuit Court of Appeals disagreed and allowed the law to stand. Although Spectrum attempted to take this case to the United States Supreme Court, this effort was ultimately unsuccessful, and the law went on to take effect.
The newly-signed law would require internet service to prorate customers’ final bills, as well as give customers a rebate if their service is interrupted for six or more consecutive hours as a result of circumstances not “beyond the reasonable control of the provider.”
In order to be eligible for proration, service must be canceled with three or more “working days” left in the monthly billing period.
Click Here to Read the Full Text of LD 1932
When the Energy, Utilities, and Technology (EUT) Committee considered this bill midway through last year, only a handful of individuals came forward to offer testimony on the legislation.
Rep. Jessica Fay (D-Raymond) — the lawmaker who introduced this legislation to the Committee — was the only person to offer written testimony in favor of the bill, while the Maine State Chamber of Commerce and several individuals representing internet service providers commented in opposition.
“Internet service is an expensive necessity for work, for school, for communication and for us to stay connected,” Rep. Fay said. “Companies charging for services not provided can be a burden on families and older people.”
The Maine State Chamber of Commerce raised several concerns over this proposal, including that it “create[s] a uniform policy that all companies must follow.”
“Some providers prorate, and others don’t, we have the confidence in the companies and customers to make those decisions rather than the government doing so,” the Chamber said.
Charter Communications testified that requiring internet service providers to prorate upon termination of service is unfair because “there are countless other products and services for which Maine consumers are sold either full monthly or annual subscriptions, where such terms do not entitle the customer to receive a refund or credit upon termination of service.”
Committee members were ultimately divided on whether or not this bill should pass, and among those who supported the legislation, there was disagreement as to what version of the bill the state ought to adopt.
Voting against the bill entirely were Rep. Mark Michael Babin (R-Fort Fairfield), Sen. Matt Harrington (R-York), and Rep. Reagan Paul (R-Winterport).
Rep. Steven D. Foster (R-Dexter) was the sole member of the EUT Committee that supported an amended version of the bill requiring customers to request an outage credit — a provision that was ultimately included in the final legislation.
The Committee’s majority report — signed onto by Sen. Mark Lawrence (D-York), Rep. Stanley Paige Zeigler (D-Montville), Rep. Valli D. Geiger (D-Rockland), Sen. Nicole Grohoski (D-Hancock), Rep. Christopher J. Kessler (D-South Portland), Rep. Walter Gerard Runte (D-York), and Rep. Sophia B. Warren (D-Scarborough) — backed an amended bill that was nearly identical to that which Rep. Foster supported but did not require customers to request an outage rebate.
Despite the majority report omitting this clause, the House approved a subsequent amendment — introduced on the floor by Fay — that re-instituted this provision into the final version of the legislation.
Representatives in the House also added a requirement that customers seeking an outage credit must submit their request within sixty days of the “end of the billing period in which the interruption occurred.”
The House voted on February 8 to approve LD 1932 as amended by both the EUT Committee and the bill’s sponsor. The Senate followed suit on February 13.
The following week, both chambers issued their final votes on the legislation. No full-chamber roll call votes were taken on this bill.
Gov. Mills signed LD 1932 into law on February 29, 2024.
