| R 068 |
| 2019 -- S 0188 Enacted 01/31/2019 |
| S E N A T E R E S O L U T I O N |
| RESPECTFULLY REQUESTING THAT THE RHODE ISLAND PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE RHODE ISLAND ATTORNEY GENERAL AND NATIONAL GRID INVESTIGATE AND DETERMINE THE CAUSES FOR THE RECENT LOSS OF GAS UTILITY SERVICE ON AQUIDNECK ISLAND |
| Introduced By: Senators Euer, DiPalma, Seveney, Coyne, and Ruggerio |
| Date Introduced: January 31, 2019 |
| WHEREAS, Beginning on Monday night, January 21, 2019, a natural gas shutdown on |
| Aquidneck Island affected 7,100 National Grid customers and occurred in the midst of a severely |
| bitter cold front that was hitting Rhode Island; and |
| WHEREAS, With temperatures in the single digits until Tuesday morning and only rising |
| into the 20’s later that day, Aquidneck Island residents who had lost their gas heat were forced to |
| scramble and quickly find new places to stay, be it with relatives or at a hotel. They were, at the |
| least, severely inconvenienced, and this emergency possibly imperiled the health of some |
| citizens, especially the elderly, the very young, and the infirm; and |
| WHEREAS, Area businesses were also impacted, as many were forced to close. |
| Employees lost wages and employers lost revenue as a result of this crisis; now, therefore be it |
| RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations |
| hereby respectfully requests that the Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission, in conjunction |
| with the Rhode Island Attorney General and National Grid investigate and determine the causes |
| for the recent loss of gas utility service on Aquidneck Island; and be it further |
| RESOLVED, That this Senate hereby requests the Rhode Island Public Utilities |
| Commission to report back to the Senate on or before June 4, 2019; and be it further |
| RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to |
| transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to the Honorable Gina M. Raimondo, Governor of |
| the State of Rhode Island, Peter F. Neronha, Rhode Island Attorney General, Ms. Margaret |
| Curran, Chairperson of the Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission, and Mr. Tim Horan, |
| President & COO, Rhode Island Jurisdiction, National Grid. |
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| LC001064 |
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