Automatic bill credits proposed for LUMA customers if outages last more than 4 hours

Rep. Roberto J. López Román

By THE STAR STAFF

A new bill introduced in the Puerto Rico House of Representatives would require automatic credits on LUMA Energy bills whenever customers experience power outages lasting more than four hours, marking one of the most direct legislative efforts yet to address widespread frustration with service interruptions.

District 31 (Caguas-Gurabo) Rep. Roberto J. López Román introduced House Bill (HB) 1042 on Tuesday. The measure, which is now before the Government Committee, would establish the “Automatic Credit for Outages Act,” aimed at protecting residential and commercial customers from prolonged service disruptions.

The bill asserts that electric service is essential to public safety, health, economic development and daily life, and argues that Puerto Rico’s current legal framework lacks a uniform, transparent mechanism for compensating customers for extended outages. Under the measure, LUMA would be required to automatically apply credits, without requiring customer claims, whenever an interruption exceeds four hours.

HB 1042 also mandates monthly publication of reliability metrics by substation and feeder, creates a tiered system of administrative fines for noncompliance, and grants the Puerto Rico Energy Bureau authority to implement and enforce the new requirements.

“Electric service is not a luxury; it is essential,” López Román said. “When that service fails for prolonged periods, the citizen’s pocket cannot continue carrying the consequences alone. If there is no service, there must be economic relief.”

The legislator, who chairs the House Labor and Industrial Relations Committee, emphasized that thousands of families face recurring outages while still receiving high bills for inconsistent service. He argued that businesses -- many of which have been forced to close temporarily due to power failures -- deserve meaningful protections and compensation.

“It is not fair to charge as if the service were efficient when the daily reality shows the opposite,” López Román said, adding that the absence of an automatic compensation mechanism has left consumers bearing the burden of a system that frequently fails.

The bill forms part of a broader legislative push to strengthen accountability, increase transparency, and provide direct relief to customers affected by Puerto Rico’s ongoing electrical service challenges.