On July 24, the three-person Public Service Commission (PSC) voted 2-1 to extend the utility shut-off moratorium for only residential customers until September 1. In June, the Commission decided to lift the moratorium and utility disconnections were scheduled for delinquent customers starting on July 25. The moratorium was originally implemented by Governor Evers in March in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and high unemployment rates and originally applied to all customer classes, including commercial and industrial.

The Commission decided to revisit the issue again during their August 20 meeting. The PSC will continue to require utilities submit disconnection plans and other customer data including specifics on disconnection notices, arrears balances and deferred payment agreements. It is estimated that roughly 70,000 customers could have faced a utility shut-off if the Commission did not extend the moratorium.

The Commission will take comments from interested organizations regarding the utility shut-off moratorium in advance of their August 20 meeting.