The Petitioners argue that in order to make the standards meaningful, utilities need a procedure by which all complaints are referred to the utility’s general counsel for informal processing and possible resolution prior to, or if resolved, in lieu of, the filing of a formal complaint with the Commission. DGS/UC/CSU agrees with the Petitioners, and further states that it supports an expedited process to review complaints related to the breach of standards of conduct as a means to minimize barriers to complaints by small players. Coastal urges the Commission to establish a complaint procedure that requires the utility, with Commission oversight, to respond expeditiously and formally to charges of discrimination or violation of the affiliate rules.
PG&E and SDG&E argue that it is unclear why a separate complaint procedure for marketing affiliate issues is warranted. PG&E adds that establishing such a procedure would elevate marketing affiliate issues beyond basic customer concerns such as utility service or billing.
At this juncture, we are not convinced that a separate complaint procedure is needed for purposes of addressing marketing affiliate issues. Our present complaint procedure requires the utility to answer a complaint expeditiously (in 30 days) and formally. With the recent establishment of the Consumer Services Division, however, we emphasize that "[t]he Commission must …be prepared to address both the new commercial relationships and the fair-dealing issues which are likely to arise with the continued movement toward greater competition in various markets." (1997 Business Plan, pp. XIV-1-2.) Competitor complaints regarding utility-affiliate relations and transactions fall into this area of the Consumer Services Division’s responsibilities.
New approaches for addressing informal complaints, outlined in our Business Plan, are available to all complainants. The proposal advanced by Petitioners suggests the complainant and utility attempt to resolve the complaint informally prior to availing themselves of the Consumer Services Division’s new approaches to informal resolution and the Commission’s formal process. Nothing in our rules prohibits a complainant and utility from attempting to resolve a complaint informally. Absent a successful conclusion to such an attempt, our new approaches for addressing informal complaints provide sufficient Commission oversight of informal complaints to complainants who wish to take advantage of our resolution services.