After a disaster strikes, outages are likely, and paying for your internet or cable that is not working should not be another burden for consumers, says Baton Rouge Senator Cleo Fields. The Commerce Committee of the Louisiana Senate agrees, passing his bill that aims to fix that.
“The whole purpose of this bill is when a consumer loses his or her services for 24 hours, they should not have to pay,” Fields said.
Fields said he’s not interested in punishing companies, but in making the process of recovery easier. To emphasize that, he proposed amendments to the bill that limited the scope of when the rebates would take effect and who would be subject to them.
“Narrow the bill down to gubernatorial declared emergency,” said Fields.
Fields said that currently, a customer needs to contact their cable or internet provider in order to receive a refund if they experienced an outage after a hurricane or severe weather. The Baton Rouge Democrat believes these refunds should occur automatically if the outage lasts more than 24 hours.
Senate Bill 352 also puts cable and internet providers under the regulatory authority of the Louisiana Public Service Commission.
Lauren Chauvin, executive director of the Louisiana Internet and Television Association, says they issued millions of dollars in refunds after Hurricane Ida and the bill calls for too many restrictions on service providers.
“We oppose the new burdens and regulations requiring a whole new entity to be regulated and lastly we oppose the strict liability that SB 352 will impose on our members,” Chauvin said.
Fields pledged to work on the wording of the legislation before he brings it up for a vote on the senate floor.
