Strong-Arming The Smart Meter

A year or so ago, a representative from BGE came to the house in an attempt to install one of the new smart-meters. I told him that I did not want it installed and that he should get off of my property immediately. He asked me to sign his paperwork which basically stated that I was refusing to give my consent to the meter "upgrade". He then informed me that I would have to submit a written letter to BGE letting them know of my opposition to the smart meter, which I did. This, I was told, would take me off of any future installation plan.

I had a minor pissing contest with BGE afterward, but for the most part, all was good.

Well, last week, I received a letter from BGE informing me that if I don't allow the installation of the the smart-meter, I will have to pay a $75 fee up front and then an additional $11 per month from here on out. WTF??

So starting in July, unless I'm willing to shell out an additional $200, I will have to give in and have the smart meter installed. So, you might be asking, "What's the big deal?" The bottom line is that I just don;t trust the utility companies. So, you think I'm paranoid? I'll respond to that with one word....Enron.

In a mad dash to grab federal stimulus funds, some of the utility companies rolled out their smart-meter projects without the normal pilot testing and public consultance. Pennsylvania's Peco Energy, for example, recently had to replace tens of thousands of newly installed smart-meters after a series of electrical problems and fires.

And then there's the issue of the radio frequencies that are emitted by the smart-meters. Sure, we're told that they're safe. But again, I remain a little skeptical.

Since these devices transmit data via a wireless network, there's also a legitimate concern about cybersecurity and privacy. Hackers have already proven in test systems that the smart-meters are vulnerable to attacks on the entire power grid. Could this potentially lead to a massive blackout?

Of course, we're also told of how much "greener" the smart-meters will be and how much money they'll save. Really? Does this mean that If I agree to have a smart-meter installed, I should see my utility rates decline? Somehow, I doubt it. And, by the way, how much of this "money savings" will be the result of job cuts as more and more smart-meters are rolled out?

Proponents tell me that the smart-meters will save me money by allow me to see where my "energy spikes" are occurring. I don't really care. I have a very good relationship with my energy spikes and I certainly don't need no damn smart-meter telling me otherwise.

The bottom line is that I should have the right to forego the smart-meter without getting beat over the head with an additional "fee". Basically, BGE is going to charge me for something that I don't have. It's kind of like the way Obamacare charges you for not buying medical coverage.

Perhaps a more "customer-friendly" marketing campaign would have been to offer a discount if you agree to a smart-meter instead of penalizing you for not having one. But then again, we're just customers. What do we really matter......

kw