The General Assembly passed a bill, sponsored by state Rep. David Thomas, to give the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio the ability to oversee submetering — a practice that results in multiunit tenants sometimes paying high rates.

The bill awaits the signature of Gov. Mike DeWine to become law.

Under the bill, the PUCO would be required to adopt standards governing metering, outages, billing practices, complaint resolution, records retention and service quality, ensuring consistent oversight and consumer protections, said Thomas, R-Jefferson, whose district includes portions of Trumbull County.

The Ohio Supreme Court ruled in April that a company engaged in submetering should be regarded as an electric light public utility and subject to the jurisdiction of the PUCO.

The state House had approved Thomas’ bill in March, before the court decision. The bill initially reinforced legal precedents that submetered utilities are not public utilities but granted the PUCO the authority to oversee submetering practices and hear complaints from tenants.

After the court decision, the Senate approved it with amendments, and the House concurred.

Thomas said, “This legislation is our response to the Ohio Supreme Court’s directive” and it “highlighted the need for legislative action. This bill is the needed reform Ohioans have wanted for nearly two decades to protect consumers.”

The Supreme Court ruling, Thomas said, “helped to expedite the passage of the bill and move toward the consumer protection side.”

A business — such as an apartment complex, office building, shopping center or industrial park — has the option to contract with a submetering company to track utility consumption for their tenants. In some cases, it has resulted in high bills for tenants.

Thomas said his legislation ensures transparency and fairness for tenants while retaining the rights of property owners.

The bill, Thomas said, “gives renters who are currently in a submetered property an actual savings to their bill and brings value to the submetering practice for consumers while also protecting the free market and property rights of landlords. This issue has lingered over the Legislature for 15 years, and we have now taken strong action to protect Ohioans.”

The bill caps the amount landlords may charge residential tenants for electricity, guaranteeing tenants pay at least 3% less than they would have paid their electric utility directly.

It also requires compliance with utility disconnection procedures, requires submetering providers to offer payment plans to customers, requires acceptance of assistance through the Home Energy Assistance Program and establishes transparent billing requirements.