Press Release

Kid Talk" Tells Pennsylvania Customers to Look for New Electric Bill

    HARRISBURG, Pa. – Shortly all Pennsylvania consumers will see major changes in the format and content of their electric bills. The Pennsylvania Electric Choice Program (PECP) launched new television ads this week to alert consumers to be on the lookout for the revised bills, which will begin to arrive in February.

    The PECP’s newest ad, titled "Kid Talk," reminds consumers that all Pennsylvania electric customers will receive more detailed bills this year, regardless of whether they chose a new supplier or not. The new format, the ad points out, will answer the question, "What are we paying for in our electric bill?"

    The new ad campaign, which began this week and runs through February 7, is part of an extensive initiative by the state’s Public Utility Commission (PUC) and the local electric distribution companies to make consumers aware of the how and why their electric bills will change.

    The PECP is a consumer education program run by the PUC in cooperation with the Pennsylvania Electric Association to introduce electric competition in the state and to inform consumers on how to shop for electricity. The program’s earlier ad campaign featured the popular "Where do you think you are, Pennsylvania?" slogan. The Philadelphia-based ad agency Earle Palmer Brown developed both campaigns.

    The "Kid Talk" ad opens with a child asking a series of questions, such as, "Why is the sky blue? Why does a giraffe have spots? What are we paying for on our electric bill?"

    The spot informs customers that one of these questions – what they pay for on their monthly electric bill – is a question that soon will be easier for them to answer, ultimately giving people more time for the really important questions in life.

    The revised bill will have the charges for electric service broken out, or unbundled, allowing customers to know exactly what they’re paying for, making it easier for them to compare and shop.

    The charges on the unbundled bill are not necessarily new – the bills will now itemize charges that have always been included as part of a customer’s total bill. These include charges for generation, transmission, and distribution.

    The local electric distribution companies are conducting extensive consumer education programs to explain the unbundled bills to customers in their service territories and to help them understand the changes they will see in their monthly statements.

    For more information about the Electric Choice Program, consumers should call 1-888-782-3228 (1-888-PUC-FACT), or contact their local electric distribution company. Information is also available on the Internet by visiting local companies’ web sites or by browsing the Electric Choice website at www.electrichoice.com.