# Discontinuance of Service

**Citation:** 4 CCR 723-4 Rule 4407  
**Type / status:** regulation / current  
**Agency:** Colorado Public Utilities Commission  
**Effective:** Not stated  
**Published:** Not stated

(a) A utility shall not discontinue the service of a customer for any reason other than the following: (I) nonpayment of regulated charges; (II) fraud or subterfuge; (III) service diversion; (IV) equipment tampering; (V) safety concerns; (VI) exigent circumstances; (VII) discontinuance ordered by an

## Document text

(a) A utility shall not discontinue the service of a customer for any reason other than
the following:
(I) nonpayment of regulated charges;
(II) fraud or subterfuge;
(III) service diversion;
(IV) equipment tampering;
(V) safety concerns;
(VI) exigent circumstances;
(VII) discontinuance ordered by any appropriate governmental authority; or
(VIII) properly discontinued service being restored by someone other than the
utility when the original cause for proper discontinuance has not been
cured.
(b) A utility shall apply nondiscriminatory criteria when determining whether to
discontinue service for nonpayment. A utility shall not discontinue service for
nonpayment of any of the following:
(I) any amount which has not appeared on a regular monthly bill or which is
not past due. Unless otherwise stated in a tariff or Commission rule, an
account becomes “past due” on the 31st day following the due date of
current charges;
(II) any past due amount that is less than $50;
(III) any amount due on another account now or previously held or guaranteed
by the customer, or with respect to which the customer received service,
unless the amount has first been transferred either to an account which is
for the same class of service or to an account which the customer has
agreed will secure the other account. Any amount so transferred shall be
considered due on the regular due date of the bill on which it first appears
and shall be subject to notice of discontinuance as if it had been billed for
the first time;

(IV) any amount due on an account on which the customer is or was neither
the customer of record nor a guarantor, or any amount due from a
previous occupant of the premises. This subparagraph does not apply if
the customer is or was obtaining service through fraud or subterfuge or if
paragraph 4401(c) applies;
(V) any amount due on an account for which the present customer is or was
the customer of record, if another person established the account through
fraud or subterfuge and without the customer's knowledge or consent;
(VI) any delinquent amount, unless the utility can supply billing records from
the time the delinquency occurred;
(VII) any debt except that incurred for service rendered by the utility in
Colorado;
(VIII) any unregulated charge; or
(IX) any amount which is the subject of a pending dispute or informal
complaint under rule 4004.
(c) If the utility discovers any connection or device installed on the customer’s
premises, including any energy-consuming device in the proximity of the utility's
meter, which would prevent the meter from registering the actual amount of
energy used, the utility shall do one of the following.
(I) Remove or correct such devices or connections. If the utility takes this
action, it shall leave at the premises a written notice which advises the
customer of the violation, of the steps taken by the utility to correct it, and
of the utility’s ability to bill the customer for any estimated energy
consumption not properly registered. This notice shall be left at the time
the removal or correction occurs.
(II) Provide the customer with written notice that the device or connection
must be removed or corrected within 15 days and that the customer may
be billed for any estimated energy consumption not properly registered. If
the utility elects to take this action and the device or connection is not
removed or corrected within the 15 days permitted, then within seven
calendar days from the expiration of the 15 days, the utility shall remove or
correct the device or connection pursuant to subparagraph (c)(I) of this
rule.
(d) If a utility discovers evidence that any utility-owned equipment has been
tampered with or that service has been diverted, the utility shall provide the
customer with written notice of the discovery. The written notice shall inform the
customer of the steps the utility will take to determine whether non-registration of

energy consumption has or will occur and shall inform the customer that the
customer may be billed for any estimated energy consumption not properly
registered. The utility shall mail or hand-deliver the written notice within three
calendar days of making the discovery of tampering or service diversion.
(e) A utility shall not discontinue service, other than to address safety concerns or in
exigent circumstances, if one of the following is met.
(I) A customer at any time tenders full payment in accordance with the terms
and conditions of the notice of discontinuance to a utility employee
authorized to receive payment. Payment of a charge for a service call
shall not be required to avoid discontinuance.
(II) If a customer pays, on or before the expiration date of the notice of
discontinuance, at least one-tenth of the amount shown on the notice and
enters into an installment payment plan with the utility, as provided in rule
4404.
(III) Outside the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Thursday.
(IV) Between the hours of 12:00 Noon on the day prior to and 8:00 a.m. on the
day following any state or federal holiday or day during which the utility’s
local office is closed.
(V) To the greatest extent practicable, a utility shall not disconnect a customer
after 11:59 a.m. on a Monday through Thursday.
(VI) Medical emergencies.
(A) A utility shall postpone service discontinuance to a residential
customer for 90 days from the date of a medical certificate issued
by a Colorado-licensed physician, health care practitioner acting
under a physician's authority, or health care practitioner licensed to
prescribe and treat patients which evidences that service
discontinuance will aggravate an existing medical emergency or
create a medical emergency for the customer or a permanent
resident of the customer's household. A customer may invoke this
subparagraph only once in any twelve consecutive months.

(B) As a condition of obtaining a new installment payment plan on or
before the last day covered by a medical certificate, a customer
who has already entered into a payment arrangement, but broke
the arrangement prior to seeking a medical certificate, may be
required to pay all amounts that were due up to the date of the
original medical certificate as a condition of obtaining a new
payment arrangement. At no time shall a payment from the
customer be required as a condition of honoring a medical
certificate.
(C) The medical certificate must be in writing (which includes electronic
certificates and signatures and those provided electronically), sent
to the utility from the office of a licensed physician, or health care
practitioner licensed to prescribe and treat patients, and clearly
show the name of the customer or individual whose illness is at
issue; the Colorado medical identification number, phone number,
name, and signature of the physician, health care practitioner
acting under a physician's authority, or health care practitioner
licensed to prescribe and treat patients certifying the medical
emergency. Such certificate is not contestable by the utility as to
the medical judgment, although the utility may use reasonable
means to verify the authenticity of such certificate.
(D) A utility may accept notification by telephone from the office of a
licensed physician, or health care practitioner licensed to prescribe
and treat patients, but a written medical certificate must be sent to
the utility within ten days.
(VII) Weather provisions.
(A) A utility shall postpone service discontinuance to a residential
customer on any day when the National Weather Service local
forecast between 6:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. predicts that the
temperature will be 32 degrees Fahrenheit (32oF) or lower at any
time during the following 24 hours, or during any additional period
in which utility personnel will not be available to restore utility
service in accordance with rule 4409. Nothing prohibits a utility from
postponing service discontinuance when temperatures are warmer
than these criteria.
(B) A utility shall postpone service discontinuance to a customer during
an emergency or safety event or circumstance impacting the local
area.
(f) In addition to its tariffs, a utility shall publish information related to its practices
around delinquency, disconnection for nonpayment, and reconnection on its

website. This information should be written in a manner that promotes customer
understanding and must be produced in English and a specific language or
languages other than English where the utility’s entire service territory contains a
population of at least ten percent who speak a specific language other than
English as their primary language as determined by the latest U.S. Census
information. A utility must include at least the following information:
(I) the customer’s rights related to service disconnection, including medical
and weather-based protections, timing restrictions on service
disconnection, and options and hours to contact the utility for support
relating to service disconnection;
(II) a summary of a customer’s options to prevent service disconnection for
nonpayment, including installment payment plan options, utility energy
assistance and affordability programs, and eligibility requirements for such
programs;
(III) referrals to organizations that provide energy payment assistance,
including energy efficiency services, such as Energy Outreach Colorado,
charities, nonprofits, and governmental entities that provide or administer
funds for such assistance;
(IV) the customer’s rights related to service restoration, including restoration
timelines, actions customers may take to restore service, and options and
hours to contact the utility for support relating to service restoration;
(V) a summary of charges, fees, and deposits to which a customer may be
subject under paragraphs 4403(j) and 4404(a), with a description of how
those amounts are calculated, explained in a way that enables a customer
to estimate the full costs they may be assessed;
(VI) a description of the customer’s options in the event of a dispute regarding
billing or disconnection practices;

(VII) a description of the options available to an occupant of a service address
who is not a customer of record and who has a court-ordered protection
order against a customer of record for the service address, relating to
past-due balances, service disconnection, restoration, and continuance at
the service address, including initiating new service, transferring service,
and the utility’s practices, policies, and criteria for determining benefit of
service for purposes of transferring a customer of record’s balance to an
occupant; and
(VIII) a description of the utility’s Demand Side Management programs,
including requirements to participate, the benefits of participating, and
utility contact information relating to such programs.
(g) Reporting requirements.
(I) Annual Report. No later than March 1 of each calendar year, each utility
shall file a report covering the prior calendar year in the miscellaneous
proceeding for utility disconnection filings, using the form available on the
Commission’s website. A utility shall provide all required data elements
beginning with the first reporting year following the effective date of this
rule. The report shall provide data on residential customers by class and
census block group, which means a geographic subdivision defined by the
United States Census Bureau, and must also break down such data by
income qualified customers, defined as customers participating in income
qualified programs authorized by rule 4412 and the Low-Income Energy
Assistance Program. For data provided in this report, paragraph 4033(b)
shall not apply. A utility may rely on existing customer address information
and commercially or publicly available geographic mapping tools to
associate customers with census block groups and is not required to
create new customer-specific data fields solely for compliance with this
rule. The report shall contain the following information, displayed by
month:
(A) total number of residential customer accounts;
(B) total dollar amount billed;
(C) total number of residential customer accounts assessed a late
payment charge;
(D) total dollar amount of late payment charges assessed during the
month;
(E) number of residential customer accounts with an arrearage
balance, where “arrearage” means an unpaid balance for regulated
utility service that is past due under the utility’s tariff, by age of

arrearage (1-30 days, 31-60 days, 61-90 days, 91 days or more),
measured as of the end of each reporting month;
(F) total dollar amount of arrearage balances by age of arrearage (1-30
days, 31-60 days, 61-90 days, 91 days or more), measured as of
the end of each reporting month;
(G) total number of disconnection notices sent;
(H) total number of disconnections for nonpayment;
(I) total number of service restorations after disconnections for
nonpayment;
(J) average duration of disconnection for nonpayment in hours,
measured from when the customer completes an action in
paragraph 4409(b) to when service is restored;
(K) total number of new installment payment plans entered into;
(L) average repayment term of new installment payment plans entered
into;
(M) proportion of residential customer accounts that go into arrears,
become disconnected, and have balances that are subsequently
charged off as bad debt under the utility’s standard accounting
practices;
(N) proportion of residential customer accounts that receive a
preventative intervention (meaning any utility action or program
intended to prevent service disconnection for nonpayment,
including, but not limited to, payment arrangements, referrals to
assistance programs, or direct bill assistance) before a
disconnection;
(O) number of residential customer accounts associated with a service
address that experienced more than one disconnection for
nonpayment within a 12-month period;
(P) number of residential customer accounts, by fuel type, that received
a regular LEAP grant for the program year;
(Q) percentage of disconnections for nonpayment that are followed by
service restoration within 24 hours and 72 hours;
(R) total arrearage amount at time of disconnection; and
(S) maximum and minimum arrearage amount at time of disconnection.

(II) Along with the items in subparagraph (g)(I), each utility shall file the
following additional items.
(A) A narrative containing the utility’s analysis of any trends or
inconsistencies revealed by the reported data for the prior year
including, at minimum, an analysis of:
(i) the total number of residential customer accounts that were
disconnected for nonpayment in the prior calendar year and
percentage of those accounts that were disconnected for
nonpayment multiple times; and
(ii) the total number of residential installment payment plans
entered into in the prior calendar year, the average length of
those installment payment plans, the number of residential
installment payment plans completed, and the number of
residential installment payment plans that were broken.
(B) Information about how the utility is working to reduce delinquencies
and disconnections, including actions taken to address residential
customer accounts experiencing multiple disconnections within a
calendar year, and efforts to identify entities to which the utility
refers customers for energy bill assistance.
(h) Receipt of a qualifying communication. For purposes of compliance with § 40-3-
103.6(3)(c)(II) and subparagraph 4001(tt)(II)(B), a customer “receives” the text or
e-mail if:
(I) the utility sends the text or email with customer assistance information to
the text address or e-mail address previously provided by the customer to
the utility; and
(II) the utility does not subsequently receive a “bounce back” or other
message indicating the text address is invalid or the e-mail address is
invalid.
(i) Customer education and outreach strategy: A utility shall conduct at least one
meeting with stakeholders and interested customers for the purpose of seeking
input on its customer education and outreach strategy for conducting
disconnections and reconnections during its multi-year strategy reporting period
under paragraph 4407(j). The results of these meetings and a detailed summary
of the customer education and outreach conducted will be reported as part of its
first annual report due no later than March 1, 2024, and each subsequent
reporting year. Such education and outreach meetings may be held in
conjunction with the income qualified meetings under paragraph 4412(j).
(j) Customer education and outreach multi-year strategy reporting: As part of its
annual report due no later than March 1, 2024, a utility shall file a customer

education and outreach strategy on residential and small commercial customer
disconnections and reconnections covering a span of the next five years. As part
of this filing, a utility shall provide an overview of its education and outreach
efforts, including qualifying communications, disconnection and reconnection
data and trends, and the tariffed rates for disconnection and reconnections. Upon
filing of an initial multi-year strategy report, each utility shall file an update to its
report every five years on March 1 of the relevant year. A utility filing a strategy
report required by paragraphs (i)-(j) of this rule is required to file updated
reporting if the education and outreach strategy changes in a material and
substantial way.

(k) Tariff: A utility shall file language to include in its tariff as cited below a
requirement to report on its five-year customer education and outreach strategy,
and if applicable, qualifying communications for reconnections. A utility filing a
strategy report required by paragraphs (i)-(j) of this rule is required to file updated
reporting if the education and outreach strategy changes in a material and
substantial way.

## Provenance

- Official: Yes
- Source: <https://www.sos.state.co.us/CCR/DisplayRule.do?action=ruleinfo&ruleId=2260&deptID=18&agencyID=96&deptName=Department%20of%20Regulatory%20Agencies&agencyName=Public%20Utilities%20Commission&seriesNum=4%20CCR%20723-4>
- Source ID: `co-sos-ccr`
- SHA-256: `297186efcdaef4df6e98a6801243c6176c3a12724bb8b6a88ec61ee5bb33ab88`
- Retrieved: 2026-08-12T04:36:48.096Z
- Exported: 2026-08-23T01:23:42.614Z
- Document slug: `co-ccr-4-723-4-4407`

### Source metadata

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  "code": "4 CCR 723-4",
  "ruleKey": "4407",
  "pipelineScope": "colorado-jurisdictional-gas-utilities",
  "legalScope": "Current 4 CCR 723-4 rules regulating Colorado jurisdictional gas utilities and gas master-meter operators, including construction, operation, system safety, gas infrastructure planning, metering, service, and enforcement provisions. This is an adjacent gas-utility corpus, not a replacement for the repealed dedicated 4900-series pipeline-safety rules.",
  "applicabilityCaveat": "Part 4 applies according to Colorado Public Utilities Commission jurisdiction and each rule's scope. The former dedicated pipeline-safety rules 4900 through 4975 are reserved after repeal; this connector does not represent them as current. Part 4 does not replace federal pipeline-safety requirements, determine whether a facility is interstate or intrastate, or resolve operator-specific orders, waivers, tariffs, or later rulemaking.",
  "references": [],
  "ruleInfoUrl": "https://www.sos.state.co.us/CCR/DisplayRule.do?action=ruleinfo&ruleId=2260&deptID=18&agencyID=96&deptName=Department%20of%20Regulatory%20Agencies&agencyName=Public%20Utilities%20Commission&seriesNum=4%20CCR%20723-4",
  "pucRulesUrl": "https://puc.colorado.gov/gasrulesandregulations",
  "ruleVersionId": "12549",
  "editionEffectiveOn": "2026-06-14",
  "publicationStatus": "The Colorado Secretary of State identifies the source as the official publication of state administrative rules. The edition date applies to the compiled rule version and is not represented as the effective date of every provision.",
  "rights": "Official state rule text is preserved with attribution and source links. Public accessibility does not imply rights in agency marks, third-party material, or incorporated standards; commercial redistribution requires review.",
  "region": "CO"
}
```