No Utility Junk Fees Act

The No Utility Junk Fees Act (H.R. 10081) conditions federal funding for state energy programs on whether states ban electric utilities from charging residential customers certain payment processing fees, referred to in the bill as "spurious charges." To keep full federal funding, states must adopt and enforce rules that prohibit these fees, require utilities to offer at least one fee-free payment method that does not require internet access, and require clear fee disclosures on customer bills.

* **Residential electricity consumers:** Individuals purchasing electricity for personal, family, or household use. * **Regulated electric utilities:** Utilities serving residential customers that currently charge or plan to charge payment processing fees. * **State governments and Public Utility Commissions:** State authorities responsible for passing statutes, administrative rules, or binding orders to enforce the bill’s requirements. * **Department of Energy (Secretary of Energy):** The federal agency responsible for evaluating state compliance and withholding or restoring state grant funds.

* **Payment fee restrictions:** Regulated electric utilities would be prohibited from charging payment fees that exceed the greater of $3.00 or 150% of the utility's direct processing costs. * **Zero-fee payment methods:** Utilities could not charge any payment fees on methods where the utility incurs no direct processing cost, such as payments made by mail, in-person at utility offices, recurring auto-pay, and direct automated clearing house (ACH) transfers. * **Fee-free payment access:** Utilities must provide residential customers with at least one payment channel that carries no fees and is accessible without using the internet. * **Billing disclosure rules:** Any allowed payment processing charges must be clearly itemized on customer bills, detailing the fee amount, the reason for the fee, the total amount due, and available fee-free payment options. * **State enforcement:** States must create processes to investigate consumer complaints, assess penalties against non-compliant utilities, and allow consumers to recover unlawfully charged fees. * **Federal funding penalties:** Starting in the first full fiscal year after enactment, the Department of Energy must withhold 10 percent of a state’s State Energy Program funding if the state fails to adopt and enforce these rules.

* **Federal funding impacts:** States risk losing 10 percent of their annual financial assistance under the Department of Energy’s State Energy Program if they do not comply. * **Fund restoration:** If a state loses funds due to non-compliance, the Secretary of Energy must restore the withheld funds in the following fiscal year once the state comes into compliance. * **Fee caps:** Payment processing fees charged to consumers are capped at whichever amount is higher: $3.00 or 150% of direct documented processing costs. Direct costs ("cost of acceptance") include processor fees, interchange fees, fraud prevention, and direct labor. Utilities cannot include general overhead, profit margins, or non-processing operational costs in these fee calculations.

* **Commercial/Industrial exclusion:** The bill's protections apply only to residential electricity customers, not commercial or industrial power buyers. * **Allowed fee overhead limits:** While utilities can pass along direct processing costs up to the designated cap, they are strictly prohibited from factoring general overhead or profit margins into payment processing fees. * **Unclear details:** The provided summary notes a section for "State Submission & Review Deadlines," but cuts off before outlining specific dates, deadlines, or submission procedures for states.

This bill uses federal funding as leverage to force states to prohibit electric utilities from charging residential customers excessive or hidden payment processing fees, while guaranteeing customers access to at least one fee-free way to pay their bill without using the internet.