Today, Maryland will see an important rule change go into effect, which both empowers customers and increases the accountability of energy suppliers. In adopting this change, the Maryland Public Service Commission is fixing a design flaw that has thwarted innovation in competitive retail energy markets since they began.
The policy is marvelously simple. Allow direct relationships between consumers and energy suppliers through the only thing many customers pay attention to — their bill.
About half the states have de-monopolized energy, allowing customers to select an electricity or gas supplier other than their incumbent utility.
