Feb 13 - North County Times, Calif.


Whether he likes it or not, Nick Cayafas is getting a "smart meter" -- and so is everyone else.

San Diego Gas & Electric Co. and Southern California Edison are in the process of replacing 6.7 million conventional electric meters with the new computerized devices.

The meters are considered essential for managing the variability of renewable electricity generation, and they offer new functions, including measuring electricity usage by when it's used and the possibility of having power turned on and off remotely. But regulations require all customers to get the new meters.

"It's just basically the privacy issues," he said. "I don't like anybody knowing when you're home, when you're not home."

 Cayafas, an Edison customer who lives in Los Angeles County, also said he was concerned about recent reports that showed problems with the meters: Security consultants demonstrated last summer that the meters can be hacked; Bakersfield residents are suing Pacific Gas & Electric Co. because they allege the meters inflate their electric bills; and PG&E dramatically increased the number of customers they disconnected thanks to their ability to remotely shut off power.

The Utility Reform Network, an advocacy group based in San Francisco, is so worried about problems with the smart-meter rollout that they've called for a statewide pause in installation.

But the smart meters have been mandated by the California Public Utilities Commission, which has regulatory authority over California's three investor-owned public utilities.

"There is a not an opt-out provision for customers. The CPUC's decision on Smart Meters does not provide an exemption," wrote commission spokeswoman Susan Carothers in an e-mail.

Carothers recommended that concerned customers contact their utility or call the PUC's Consumer Affairs Bureau at 800-649-7570.

Call staff writer Eric Wolff at 760-740-5412.

-----

To see more of the North County Times or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.nctimes.com.

Copyright (c) 2010, North County Times, Escondido, Calif.

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

(c) 2010, McClatchy-Tribune Information Services