Sign the petition for Big Fine, Big Fix of PEPCO, BGE power failures:

We've joined Senator Brian Frosh in writing to Maryland Public Service Commission Chair Doug Nazarian asking the PSC to impose fines of more than $100 million each for PEPCO and BGE to fund a "Surge Reserve" of trained workers to end long power failures.
 
And you can sign on to our letter.
 
In the next few weeks, the PSC will be investigating the PEPCO and BGE power failures and deciding whether or not to get tough. The PSC has all the authority it needs.
 
But it needs to hear from customers who were the victims.
 
As we said in our letter, "The results of (the power companies') failure to face reality and modernize are clear to all Marylanders -- food rotting in refrigerators, hourly workers laid off, small businesses closed for days, and hundreds of millions of dollars in goods, services and productivity lost by our constituents."
 
In 2011, the Maryland legislature required the PSC to set reliability standards and increased the fines the PSC can impose to $25,000 per customer per day. 
 
With this authority, the we urged the PSC to:
 

• impose significant fines on the utilities for their power failures, based on the economic dangers they caused and the need to incentivize them to change their behavior;
   
• develop a plan to modernize our electric infrastructure of the 21st century, including selective undergrounding;
   
• propose a "surge reserve" plan to the Governor providing enough technically-trained local professionals to restore service promptly to customers in the next predictable extreme weather event. 

If you agree, click the petition link and add your name! 


     PEPCO customers, click here.

     BGE customers, click here.


 

We want to hear from you!

In recent months, we've been working hard to represent you on many important priorities, such as improving our schools, protecting our environment, making our neighborhoods safer, and fighting increases in electric rates and health insurance costs. 

There's much more to be done, and we want to hear your ideas.  Just fill out the questionnaire at the link below. 

And feel free to contact us at 301-858-3141 or 21stDistrictDelegation@gmail.com

Please click here to complete our online questionnaire

Help in tough times:

Jobs, energy bills, college tuition, foreclosure, health insurance, and more 

The Great Recession caused by the financial crisis on Wall Street is hurting working and retired families in many ways -- lost jobs, shrunken retirement nest eggs, and fear for the future. President Obama is working hard to lead our country back to prosperity. 

But people need help now, as well.

To help you more easily find state help which may be available, Governor O'Malley has launched a website -- www.problemsolver.maryland.gov -- which brings together in one place information on state aid to our neighbors who need help in these tough times.

You'll find information on ways to pay electric and gas bills, replace lost medical insurance, look for a job, get a college scholarship, protect your home from foreclosure, and much more.   

www.problemsolver.maryland.gov

Take a look at the site and see if there is any help that might be useful to you, a friend or a neighbor.