Hawaii PUC Response July 11 2012

7/31/2019 Hawaii PUC Response July 11 2012

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Supporting documents included:

1. STIPULATION FOR DISMISSAL WITH PREJUDICE; AND ORDER (Exhibit A)2. KIUC deferral form (Exhibit B)3. Formal Complaint and Notification to KIUC letter (Exhibit C)4. Smart meters, AMI, AMR, and their respective definitions (Exhibit D)

Nature of Complaint

The landmark Federal Court case of ADAM ASQUITH vs. KAUAI ISLAND UTILITY

COOPERATIVE for injunctive relief ended in an out of court settlement when KIUCs motion to

dismiss was voluntarily withdrawn on April 25, 2012.

The case was settled without going to trial. This was agreed upon at the first hearing on the injunction

where the judge severely admonished KIUC. KIUC agreed that they did not want it to go to trial and

agreed to settle with Adam on his complaint.

The settlement agreement was presented to the court for approval and signed by both parties on May 31,

2012. The STIPULATION FOR DISMISSAL WITH PREJUDICE; AND ORDER (see Exhibit A),

was approved and so ordered by Federal Court Judge Helen Gillmor on June 1, 2012.

Condition 1 of this agreement states:

"KIUC agrees that it will not seek to install (including but not limited to requesting from the

Hawaii Public Utilities Commission ("PUC") permission or authorization to install a smart meter

on premises where the electricity accounts are in Plaintiff's name), and will not voluntarily install

without court order or an order or determination of the PUC, any smart meters on premises where

the electricity accounts are in Plaintiff's name without Plaintiff's permission."


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By legal definition, making such an agreement with one (1) member of the Cooperative, KIUC is required

by PUC regulations and state law to have this settlement apply to all Cooperative members.

Under General Order No. 7 of the Hawaii PUC Standards for Electric Utility Service in the State of

Hawaii, section 1.2 Application of Rules, item f states:

f. Each electric utility may of its own accord establish uniform non-discriminatory rules more

favorable to its customers than the rules herein established.

KIUC of its own accord established such a rule by signing and agreeing to the above settlement and its

conditions. This new rule must be applicable as a uniform non-discriminatory rule to all cooperative

members.

Adam Asquith stated to me and I quote,

KIUC admitted that they cannot offer me (Adam) a special deal and these new conditions must

be offered to all members under their PUC regulations.

To clarify Condition 1, and establish this new KIUC rule as required by PUC regulations, the term

Plaintiff now becomes Co-op Member as below:

Condition 1 of this agreement creates this new rule:

"KIUC agrees that it will not seek to install (including but not limited to requesting from the

Hawaii Public Utilities Commission ("PUC") permission or authorization to install a smart meter

on premises where the electricity accounts are in Co-op Member's name), and will not

voluntarily install without court order or an order or determination of the PUC, any smart meters

on premises where the electricity accounts are in Co-op Member's name without Co-op

Member's permission."

This new rule has the following legal guidelines that KIUC has agreed to follow and implement:


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1.KIUC must have Co-op Member's permission before installation of any smart meter on

premises where the electricity accounts are in Co-op Member's name.

2.KIUC will not request permission or authorization to install any smart meters from the PUC

where the electricity accounts are in Co-op Member's name.

3.KIUC must have a court order or an order or determination of the PUC to install any smart

meters without permission of Co-op Member.

The continued rollout of smart meters (see Exhibit D) on Kauai by KIUC is in direct violation of PUC

regulations and state law, as well as undermining the Federal court approved settlement with Adam

Asquith. It is also discriminatory and exposes the Cooperative to multiple lawsuits, the cost of which will

ultimately be borne by the co-op members.

KIUC has stated on its website:

Settlement Reached in Smart Meter Installation Complaint

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Lhue, Kauai, HI 06/04/12Kauai Island Utility Cooperative and Adam Asquith have

reached a settlement in Mr. Asquiths effort in federal court to block the installation of a smart

meter on his home.

The settlement provides to Mr. Asquith the same assurance KIUC gives to those who fill out a

deferral form: You dont have to have an advanced meter if you dont want one.

Specifically, the settlement states that KIUC will not install a smart meter on Mr. Asquiths

property without his permission and will not seek authorization from the Hawaii Public Utilities

Commission to install a smart meter there.


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The terms of the settlement apply only to Mr. Asquith. The decision whether to defer can only be

made by the customer whose name is on the KIUC account.

KIUC denies application ofGeneral Order No. 7 of the Hawaii PUC Standards for Electric Utility

Service in the State of Hawaii, section 1.2 Application of Rules item f by stating The terms of the

settlement apply only to Mr. Asquith. KIUC is also claiming it can make rules and settlements with

individual Co-op members, thus creating un-equal status and discrimination among Co-op members.

KIUCs statement The settlement provides to Mr. Asquith the same assurance KIUC gives to those who

fill out a deferral form is equally unsettling, as the deferral form (see Exhibit B) contains no such terms

or assurances as stipulated within the Settlement.

Both of these statements and the claims they make are misleading and exposes the Cooperative to

multiple lawsuits, the cost of which will ultimately be borne by the co-op members.

Must each Co-op member file suit in Federal Court to get the same settlement that Adam Asquith has?

Does KIUC have the right to discriminate against Co-op members who cant afford to file a lawsuit?

As a Co-op member and owner, the cost of defending KIUCs discriminatory stance is not in the best

interests of the cooperative, and will lead to more lawsuits being filed.

By denying the rights of Co-op members in this manner, it is imperative that the PUC act quickly and

decisively to provide immediate relief and establish equality that extends to all KIUC Cooperative

members. Such action will also limit our exposure to lawsuits and its associated costs.


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Statement of Remedial Action Desired

All installations of smart meters (see Exhibit D) on and after June 1, 2012 were done without permission

as defined by KIUCs settlement with Adam Asquith, are illegal in the eyes of the law, and exposes the

Cooperative to multiple lawsuits, the cost of which will ultimately come out of the members' pockets.

As KIUC has yet to make this settlement applicable in a uniform and non-discriminatory manner, and

continues to break PUC regulations and undermine the rights of its cooperative members, I submit that

immediate relief be granted as follows:

1. Uphold and enforce the settlement between KIUC and Adam Asquith as a uniform and non-discriminatory rule which applies to all Co-op members.

2. Halt all non-consent smart meter installations on co-op members immediately.3. Initiate an immediate moratorium on smart meter installations, until such a time that an Opt-In

form is available to the Co-op members.

4. KIUC violated the Co-op members trust and exposed the cooperative to multiple lawsuits bystarting the smart meter deployment in May, while negotiating a settlement that would make such

a deployment subject to further litigation. As such, all smart meters that were installed from April

25, 2012 onward must be made consensual by the co-op member in writing as an Opt-In

agreement; otherwise KIUC must remove the smart meter and replace it with the Co-op

members original or analog meter.

5. KIUC should be reprimanded for the excesses, hubris and abuse of power shown and heapedupon the Co-op members that have caused such damage to the trust and standing of our Utility

among Kauais citizens. The Officers and Board should be required to make a formal apology to


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4463 Pahee Street, Suite 1 Lhue, Kauai, HI 96766-2000 (808)246-4300 www.kiuc.coop


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From:Mark NaeaSent: Tuesday, June 12, 2012 4:58 PMTo:David Bissell ; Jim Kelly ; KIUC BODCc:Hawaii PUCSubject: Formal Complaint and Notification to KIUC

To: KIUC Officers, Board, employees, its contractors and interested parties,

RE: By Permission Only Opt-In Agreement as defined within the settlement agreement with Adam Asquith

This is a Formal Complaint and Notification

Dear Sirs,

I hereby formally request that you cease and desist all smart meter installations without permission of the account

holder (co-op member). By your settlement agreement with Adam Asquith, the STIPULATION FOR

DISMISSAL WITH PREJUDICE; AND ORDER, recorded in Federal court on June 1, 2012, and your own

statements to Adam Asquith, you are now required and bound by both PUC Regulations and state law to the

following conditions of said settlement:

1.KIUC must have Co-op Member's permission before installation of any smart meter on premises where

the electricity accounts are in Co-op Member's name.

2.KIUC will not request permission or authorization to install any smart meters from the PUC where the

electricity accounts are in Co-op Member's name.

3.KIUC must have a court order or an order or determination of the PUC to install any smart meters

without permission of Co-op Member.

All installations of smart meters on and after June 1, 2012 were done without permission as defined by your

settlement, are illegal in the eyes of the law, and exposes the Cooperative to multiple lawsuits, the cost of which

will ultimately come out of the members' pockets.

As KIUC has yet to make this landmark case public, and continues to break state law, PUC regulations, and

undermine the right of its cooperative members, I submit this FORMAL COMPLAINT and NOTICE TO CEASE

AND DESIST as follows:

1. Stop all illegal smart meter installations immediately.2. End the Smart Meter Pilot program immediately.3. Replace all illegally installed smart meters with their original or analog meter.4. Initiate an immediate moratorium on smart meters based on the settlement agreement.5. Begin Public hearings to clean up this mess and apologize to the co-op members.

If the above actions are not initiated by KIUC with a written response stating compliance, no later than 10:00 am

Friday June 15, 2012, I will have no recourse but to file a FORMAL COMPLAINT with the PUC and beginCourt proceedings in order to protect my interests as a co-op member and owner.

Sincerely

Mark Naea

6581 Puupilo Rd.

Kapaa, HI 96746


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ADVANCED METERING INFRASTRUCTURE & SMART METERS

Smart Meters are electronic measurement devices used by utilities to communicate information for billing

customers and operating their electric systems. The combination of the electronic meters with two-way

communications technology for information, monitor, and control is commonly referred to as AdvancedMetering infrastructure (AMI).

A smart meter provides functionality beyond the basic measurement of consumption of the supplied

commodity. A smart metering system is where smart meters are connected to other devices via a series of

technologies that enables meters to be read and data transferred without human intervention (sometimes

called AMR) and so enable an enhanced level of service.

Previous systems, which utilized one-way communications to collect meter data were referred to as AMR

(Automated Meter Reading) Systems. AMI has developed over time, from its roots as a metering reading

substitute (AMR) to todays two-way communication and data system.

Conventional electromechanical meters served as the utility cash register for most of its history. At the

residential level, these meters simply recorded the total energy consumed over a period of time typically a

month. Smart meters are solid state programmable devices that perform many more functions, including most

or all of the following:

Time-based pricing

Consumption data for consumer and utility

Net metering

Loss of power (and restoration) notification

Remote turn on / turn off operations

Load limiting for bad pay or demand response purposes

Energy prepayment

Power quality monitoring

Tamper and energy theft detection

Communications with other intelligent devices in the home

Smart meter technology not only provides a highly efficient method for obtaining usage data from customers,

but it also can provide up-to-the-minute information on consumption patterns since the meter reading devices

can be programmed to provide data as often as needed. Many of the newer AMR meters provide the same

functionality. AMR can also be used for Time-of-Use pricing applications and pinpointing outages.

AMI is also envisioned as including a Home Area Network (HAN), whereby various devices throughout a

household - these may include lighting, thermostats, and other electrical appliances, etc. would be in wireless

contact with a central coordination and data collection node within the residence. The HAN would enable such a

household to receive data describing its electrical usage behavior, and enable optimal energy usage efficiency.

Smart Meters transfer data wirelessly with a radio-frequency (RF) transmission to a nearby Neighborhood Area

Networks (NANs) for transmission to service providers over Wide Area Networks (WANs).


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Documents

Hawaii PUC Response July 11 2012