Nevada PUC lowers fee for rejecting smart meters

The Public Utilities Commission on Wednesday approved lower fees for NV Energy customers who are opposed to new smart meters and want to retain an analog meter.In a 2-1 decision reported by the Las Vegas Sun, commissioners also gave the utility more discretion to choose an alternative for people opposed to the digital devices that transmit energy use data remotely.NV Energy said residential customers who don’t want a digital meter will receive a refurbished analog meter that has been sealed and tested to ensure all meters meet applicable standards.Commissioners in November approved a plan to charge customers a $107 installation cost for an alternate meter. But that fee was greatly reduced under an agreement between NV Energy and the state Bureau of Consumer Protection.The utility company said the opt-out for customers in the Las Vegas area will include a one-time fee of $52.86 and $8.82 per month. Northern Nevada electric customers will pay a one-time fee of $52.44 and $8.82 cents monthly.The monthly fee is to help cover the expense of having someone manually read the meters for billing.NV Energy has installed about 1.3 million smart meters statewide.The PUC estimates 4,500 consumers in Clark County and 3,000 in Northern Nevada objected to smart meters, saying they cause health hazards or invade privacy.