Will I Get Cut Off in West Virginia? Utility Shutoff Rules & Protections

What to do today

If you have a shutoff notice, the date on it is the one that matters. These steps work best in this order.

Call your utility before the date on your notice
Ask for a payment plan or a deferred payment arrangement. Most states require your utility to offer one, and asking before the date is what keeps your service on. The number is on your bill.
Apply for energy assistance
LIHEAP helps with utility bills and does not have to be paid back. Call the national referral line on 1-866-674-6327 weekdays 9am to 7pm Eastern, or visit energyhelp.us.
Dial 211 for local help
211 is free and connects you to local funds for utilities, rent and food. Some local agencies can pay a utility directly to stop a shutoff.
Ask about medical certification
West Virginia recognises medical protections. If anyone in your home has a serious illness or relies on powered medical equipment, a note from a doctor can delay a shutoff. Ask your utility for the form today, because it usually has to be back within days.
Contact the regulator if your utility will not work with you
psc.state.wv.us handles complaints against regulated utilities in West Virginia. Filing one can pause a disconnection while it is looked at.

Electric Shutoff Rules

Regulatory notice required10 days

Reconnection fee$8.75 to $17.50 standard, at 3 of 3 utilities below

Winter moratorium: November 1–April 15: utilities cannot terminate residential electric service in hardship cases where the customer lacks financial resources to pay their entire account. Service cannot be disconnected when it would be dangerous to someone in the household. If on a payment plan and a payment is missed, a 5-day letter or in-person/phone contact is required before service is cut. Additional 24-hour contact attempt (in person or by phone) required before actual disconnection.

Major Utilities

Appalachian Power Monongahela Power Potomac Edison

Appalachian Power

Southern and western West Virginia. The company's own filed tariff (P.S.C. W.Va. Tariff No. 16, "West Virginia Service Territory," Sheets 2-1 through 2-7) lists the incorporated cities and towns it serves grouped into six districts -- Beckley, Bluefield, Charleston, Huntington, Logan and Williamson -- covering communities from Ansted and Beckley to Barboursville, Belle and Bramwell. The same tariff book also carries Wheeling Power Company (P.S.C. W.Va. Tariff No. 21) in the northern panhandle. A total West Virginia customer count was not recorded: no figure for it could be pulled from a page this session actually fetched.

10-day notice

Rule 4.8.1.e.2 defines a Seasonal Time Period of November 1 through March 31

Rule 4.8.2.b.2.B requires three personal-contact attempts on three separate business days (instead of the usual two under 4.8.2.b.2.A), at least one of them an on-site visit, when the termination date falls inside that period or a Certified Health Condition exists -- this is extra notice, not a winter moratorium, and 4.8.1.e says it "does not prohibit disconnection." The last attempt must be at least 48 hours before the scheduled termination

Statewide rule: WV PSC Rule 150 CSR 3 (Rules for the Government of Electric Utilities), current version effective 7/11/2018 and confirmed Active on the WV Secretary of State's rule-version list (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/rule.aspx?rule=150-03

the 8/28/2011 and earlier versions are marked Historical)

Rule 4.8.2.b.1: written notice must comply with P.S.C

W.Va. Form No

14-E and "shall be sent first class mail, address correction requested, postmarked at least ten (10) days prior to the scheduled termination," and the notice may not be mailed before the bill is delinquent

The rule says "ten (10) days," never "business days," so the 10 runs as calendar days from the postmark, not from delivery

Rule 4.8.3 sets a $5.00 reconnection charge "unless otherwise provided in an effective tariff on file with the Commission" -- that $5.00 is only a fallback and is superseded here by this utility's own filed tariff, quoted below

Rule text checked against both Cornell LII and the Secretary of State's scanned copy of the filed 2018 rule (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/readfile.aspx?DocId=50441&Format=PDF), which match word for word

Appalachian Power's own filed tariff supersedes the $5.00 default

P.S.C

W.Va. Tariff No

16 (Appalachian Power Company) / No

21 (Wheeling Power Company), Terms and Conditions of Service, Sheet No. 3-8, states the company's discontinuance policy "will conform with those conditions specified in Section 4.8" of the PSC electric rules -- so the 10-day notice above is the operative deadline -- and sets the reconnection charges recorded in the fee field

That sheet was issued pursuant to P.S.C

West Virginia Case No

24-0854-E-42T, Order dated August 28, 2025, effective for bills rendered on or after September 29, 2025, and the $8.75/$13/$37.50 figures each carry a (D) decrease marker against the prior sheet

Tariff fetched at https://www.appalachianpower.com/lib/docs/ratesandtariffs/WestVirginia/ENEC_Tariff_Sheets_Eff_9-1-26.pdf, which is the West Virginia tariff currently linked from appalachianpower.com/company/about/rates/wv

The Commission's own tariff library could not be used as a second check: psc.wv.gov and psc.state.wv.us both refuse connections from this environment (502 on CONNECT and 403 respectively on every path tried), so the tariff was read from the copy the utility itself publishes

Appalachian Power is an investor-owned utility under PSC jurisdiction, so 150 CSR 3 binds it

West Virginia's municipal systems and rural electric cooperatives are not covered by this row

Reconnection fee:$8.75 when payment is made 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday (same-day reconnection), and also $8.75 for next-business-morning reconnection; $13 for payment after 5 p.m. Monday-Friday if service can be reconnected before dark; $37.50 if the customer elects to pay in advance for reconnection on the next non-business day. Life-support customers reconnected remotely are not charged. Per P.S.C. W.Va. Tariff No. 16, Terms and Conditions of Service, Sheet No. 3-8.

Assistance Programs

Special Reduced Rate Residential Service (S.R.R.-R.S. Amendment to the residential schedule): rates 20% lower for the December, January, February, March and April billing months for residential customers who qualify under W. Va. Code 24-2A. Eligibility for West Virginia's 24-2A programs is administered through the state, not the utility.

"W. Va. Code R. 150-3-4 (WV PSC Rules for the Government of Electric Utilities, Customer Relations), version effective 7/11/2018, confirmed Active on the WV Secretary of State's rule-version list (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/rule.aspx?rule=150-03)." law.cornell.edu. Retrieved 22 Sep 2026.

Monongahela Power

Northern West Virginia. FirstEnergy's own newsroom states: "Mon Power serves about 395,000 customers in 34 West Virginia counties" (firstenergycorp.com news release "Struggling with Seasonal Energy Bills? Mon Power and Potomac Edison Can Help," page last modified March 25, 2026). Its filed tariff is P.S.C. W. Va. No. 22.

10-day notice

Rule 4.8.1.e.2 defines a Seasonal Time Period of November 1 through March 31

Rule 4.8.2.b.2.B requires three personal-contact attempts on three separate business days (instead of the usual two under 4.8.2.b.2.A), at least one of them an on-site visit, when the termination date falls inside that period or a Certified Health Condition exists -- this is extra notice, not a winter moratorium, and 4.8.1.e says it "does not prohibit disconnection." The last attempt must be at least 48 hours before the scheduled termination

Statewide rule: WV PSC Rule 150 CSR 3 (Rules for the Government of Electric Utilities), current version effective 7/11/2018 and confirmed Active on the WV Secretary of State's rule-version list (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/rule.aspx?rule=150-03

the 8/28/2011 and earlier versions are marked Historical)

Rule 4.8.2.b.1: written notice must comply with P.S.C

W.Va. Form No

14-E and "shall be sent first class mail, address correction requested, postmarked at least ten (10) days prior to the scheduled termination," and the notice may not be mailed before the bill is delinquent

The rule says "ten (10) days," never "business days," so the 10 runs as calendar days from the postmark, not from delivery

Rule 4.8.3 sets a $5.00 reconnection charge "unless otherwise provided in an effective tariff on file with the Commission" -- that $5.00 is only a fallback and is superseded here by this utility's own filed tariff, quoted below

Rule text checked against both Cornell LII and the Secretary of State's scanned copy of the filed 2018 rule (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/readfile.aspx?DocId=50441&Format=PDF), which match word for word

Mon Power's own filed tariff supersedes the $5.00 default

P.S.C

Va. No

22 (Monongahela Power Company, Rates and Rules & Regulations), Third Revision of Original Sheet No. 4-8, sets the reconnection charges recorded in the fee field

the reconnection charge is payable before reconnection, but the tariff adds that where an installment payment plan is appropriate "the requirement for the advance payment of the reconnection fee may not apply and any reconnection fee may be a part of such installment payment plan." The same sheet notes the company is not required to reconnect after dark absent a bona fide emergency, per a waiver of Commission Rule 4.8.2.b.11

That sheet was issued March 4, 2019, effective January 4, 2019, under PSC General Order No

184.39 dated June 11, 2018

other sheets in the same tariff book run as recent as August 1, 2026, so the book is current and the reconnection sheet simply has not changed since 2019

Tariff fetched at https://www.firstenergycorp.com/content/dam/customer/Customer%20Choice/Files/west-virginia/tariffs/WVMPRetailTariff.pdf, the file currently linked from firstenergycorp.com's West Virginia Tariffs page

The Commission's own tariff library could not be used as a second check: psc.wv.gov and psc.state.wv.us both refuse connections from this environment (502 on CONNECT and 403 respectively on every path tried), so the tariff was read from the copy the utility itself publishes

Reconnection fee:$17.50 straight time (normal working hours); $57.50 callout evenings or Saturdays; $72.50 callout Sundays; $87.50 callout holidays. Per P.S.C. W. Va. No. 22, Rules and Regulations for Electric Service, Sheet No. 4-8.

Assistance Programs

Reduced Rate Residential Service Rider ("SRRRS Rider"), P.S.C. W. Va. No. 22 Sheet 6-1: Residential Rate Schedule "A" reduced by 20% for service rendered in November through March for a customer receiving SSI, AFDC, AFDC-U, or food stamps if 60 or older. FirstEnergy's own newsroom also points West Virginia customers to the Dollar Energy Fund, the Emergency Assistance Program (a one-time payment to avoid termination), and the 2-1-1 helpline, and lists its assistance page at firstenergycorp.com/billassist.

"W. Va. Code R. 150-3-4 (WV PSC Rules for the Government of Electric Utilities, Customer Relations), version effective 7/11/2018, confirmed Active on the WV Secretary of State's rule-version list (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/rule.aspx?rule=150-03)." law.cornell.edu. Retrieved 22 Sep 2026.

Potomac Edison

The Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. FirstEnergy's own newsroom states: "Potomac Edison serves about 285,000 customers in seven Maryland counties and 155,000 customers in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia" (firstenergycorp.com news release "Struggling with Seasonal Energy Bills? Mon Power and Potomac Edison Can Help," page last modified March 25, 2026). Sister FirstEnergy subsidiary to Monongahela Power; its West Virginia tariff is P.S.C. W. Va. No. 3. This row covers the West Virginia service area only -- Maryland customers are under Maryland rules, not 150 CSR 3.

10-day notice

Rule 4.8.1.e.2 defines a Seasonal Time Period of November 1 through March 31

Rule 4.8.2.b.2.B requires three personal-contact attempts on three separate business days (instead of the usual two under 4.8.2.b.2.A), at least one of them an on-site visit, when the termination date falls inside that period or a Certified Health Condition exists -- this is extra notice, not a winter moratorium, and 4.8.1.e says it "does not prohibit disconnection." The last attempt must be at least 48 hours before the scheduled termination

Statewide rule: WV PSC Rule 150 CSR 3 (Rules for the Government of Electric Utilities), current version effective 7/11/2018 and confirmed Active on the WV Secretary of State's rule-version list (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/rule.aspx?rule=150-03

the 8/28/2011 and earlier versions are marked Historical)

Rule 4.8.2.b.1: written notice must comply with P.S.C

W.Va. Form No

14-E and "shall be sent first class mail, address correction requested, postmarked at least ten (10) days prior to the scheduled termination," and the notice may not be mailed before the bill is delinquent

The rule says "ten (10) days," never "business days," so the 10 runs as calendar days from the postmark, not from delivery

Rule 4.8.3 sets a $5.00 reconnection charge "unless otherwise provided in an effective tariff on file with the Commission" -- that $5.00 is only a fallback and is superseded here by this utility's own filed tariff, quoted below

Rule text checked against both Cornell LII and the Secretary of State's scanned copy of the filed 2018 rule (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/readfile.aspx?DocId=50441&Format=PDF), which match word for word

Potomac Edison's own filed tariff supersedes the $5.00 default

P.S.C

Va. No. 3 (The Potomac Edison Company, Rates and Rules & Regulations for Electric Service), Rule 16, "Reconnection of the Supply of Electricity," Sheet No. 4-15, sets the charges recorded in the fee field, payable before reconnection, and adds that where an installment payment plan is appropriate "the requirement for the advance payment of the reconnection fee may not apply and any reconnection fee may be a part of such installment payment plan." Absent a bona fide emergency the company need not reconnect after dark, per a waiver of Commission Rule 4.8.2.b.11

That sheet was issued March 4, 2019, effective January 4, 2019

other sheets in the same tariff book run to August 1, 2026, so the book is current and this sheet is simply unchanged since 2019

Tariff fetched at https://www.firstenergycorp.com/content/dam/customer/Customer%20Choice/Files/west-virginia/tariffs/WVPERetailTariff.pdf, the file currently linked from firstenergycorp.com's West Virginia Tariffs page

The Commission's own tariff library could not be used as a second check: psc.wv.gov and psc.state.wv.us both refuse connections from this environment (502 on CONNECT and 403 respectively on every path tried), so the tariff was read from the copy the utility itself publishes

Reconnection fee:$10.00 straight time (normal working hours); $30.00 callout evenings or Saturdays; $36.00 callout Sundays; $44.00 callout holidays. Per P.S.C. W. Va. No. 3, Rule 16, Sheet No. 4-15. The $10.00 straight-time charge does not apply to customers in the territory formerly served by Shenandoah Valley Electric Cooperative where reconnection is done with a remote service switch and no trip is required.

Assistance Programs

Reduced Rate Residential Service Rider ("SRRRS" Rider), P.S.C. W. Va. No. 3 Sheet 7-A-1: Residential Rate Schedules "R" and "R-A" reduced by 20% for the December through April billing months, which correlate to service supplied November through March, for a customer receiving SSI, AFDC, AFDC-U, or food stamps if 60 or older. FirstEnergy's own newsroom also points West Virginia customers to the Dollar Energy Fund, the Emergency Assistance Program (a one-time payment to avoid termination), and the 2-1-1 helpline, at firstenergycorp.com/billassist.

"W. Va. Code R. 150-3-4 (WV PSC Rules for the Government of Electric Utilities, Customer Relations), version effective 7/11/2018, confirmed Active on the WV Secretary of State's rule-version list (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/rule.aspx?rule=150-03)." law.cornell.edu. Retrieved 22 Sep 2026.

Gas Shutoff Rules

Regulatory notice required10 days

Reconnection fee$25 to $30 standard, at 2 of 2 utilities below

Major Utilities

Mountaineer Gas Co Hope Gas

Mountaineer Gas Company

Its filed tariff (P.S.C. W. Va. No. 2, "Index of Communities Served," Sheets 3 through 5B) states gas service "is available in all localities where the Company has pipelines" and lists communities in 46 counties: Barbour, Berkeley, Boone, Braxton, Brooke, Cabell, Calhoun, Clay, Doddridge, Fayette, Gilmer, Grant, Greenbrier, Hancock, Hardy, Harrison, Jackson, Jefferson, Kanawha, Lewis, Lincoln, Logan, Marion, Marshall, Mason, Mercer, Mineral, Mingo, Monongalia, Monroe, Ohio, Preston, Putnam, Raleigh, Randolph, Ritchie, Roane, Summers, Tucker, Tyler, Upshur, Wayne, Wetzel, Wirt, Wood and Wyoming. A customer count is not recorded: no figure for it could be pulled from a page this session actually fetched (mountaineergas.com fails TLS certificate validation, confirmed with curl -v against the proxy CA bundle, and mountaineergasonline.com's HTML pages return a Cloudflare bot-check interstitial -- only its tariff PDFs came through).

10-day notice

Rule 4.8.1.e.2 defines a Seasonal Time Period of November 1 through March 31

That is added notice, not a moratorium: Rule 4.8.1.e states it "does not prohibit disconnection." Rule 4.8.3 sets a $5.00 reconnection charge "unless otherwise provided in an effective tariff on file with the Commission," so the utility's own filed tariff below controls, not the $5.00

Statewide rule: WV PSC Rule 150 CSR 4 (Rules for the Government of Gas Utilities and Gas Pipeline Safety), current version effective 7/11/2018 and confirmed Active on the WV Secretary of State's rule-version list (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/rule.aspx?rule=150-04)

Rule 4.8.2.b.1: written notice must comply with P.S.C

W.Va. Form No

14-G and "shall be sent first class mail, address correction requested, postmarked at least ten (10) days prior to the scheduled termination"

it may not be mailed before the bill is delinquent

The rule says "ten (10) days," not "business days," so the 10 runs as calendar days from the postmark

This is the gas chapter, read separately from the electric chapter (150 CSR 3) -- the two happen to carry the same 10-day figure, but it was checked in the gas text, not copied across

Rule 4.8.2.b.2.B then requires three personal-contact attempts on three separate business days instead of two, at least one an on-site visit, with the last at least 48 hours before termination

Mountaineer Gas is an investor-owned gas utility under PSC jurisdiction, so 150 CSR 4 binds it

Its own tariff confirms the hook: P.S.C

Va. No. 2, Section 9.2, lets the company terminate service "upon written notice to the Customer, as provided in Gas Rule 4.8," with nonpayment of an undisputed delinquent account first on the list -- so the statewide 10-day Form 14-G notice is the operative deadline, and the tariff sets no shorter one

Section 9.3 sets the $25.00 reconnection charge recorded in the fee field, and Section 9.4 provides that service terminated under 9.1/9.2 is restored on correction of the cause plus "a payment equal to the reconnection charge" -- which is how the $25.00 reaches a customer shut off for nonpayment

The sheet carrying 9.3 and 9.4 (Third Revision of Sheet No

29) was issued December 6, 2022, effective December 1, 2022

the Section 9.2 sheet (Third Revision of Sheet No

28) is effective September 10, 2018 under PSC General Order No

185.40

Tariff fetched at https://mountaineergasonline.com/assets/mgcrr.pdf (complete rules and regulations, Sheets 1-49) and https://mountaineergasonline.com/assets/mgcrs.pdf (Residential Service rate schedule)

The Commission's own tariff library could not be used as a second check: psc.wv.gov and psc.state.wv.us both refuse connections from this environment (502 on CONNECT and 403 respectively on every path tried), so the tariff was read from the copy the utility itself publishes

Reconnection fee:$25.00. Per P.S.C. W. Va. No. 2, Rules and Regulations Section 9.3, Third Revision of Sheet No. 29. For a residential customer who reapplies within eight months of a customer-requested disconnection, the $25.00 comes on top of a catch-up charge based on the months disconnected multiplied by the customer charge and pipeline demand charge.

Assistance Programs

Special Reduced Rate Residential Service (SRRRS), stated in the Residential Service rate schedule (P.S.C. W. Va. No. 2, Sheet No. 50 et seq.): service billed at the normal residential rates less a 20% credit before local taxes, for the December through April billing months, for a customer receiving SSI, AFDC/TANF, AFDC-U/TANF-UP, or food stamps if 60 or older, under W. Va. Code 24-2A-1. Application is made through the West Virginia Department of Human Services.

"W. Va. Code R. 150-4-4 (WV PSC Rules for the Government of Gas Utilities and Gas Pipeline Safety, Customer Relations), version effective 7/11/2018, confirmed Active on the WV Secretary of State's rule-version list (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/rule.aspx?rule=150-04)." law.cornell.edu. Retrieved 22 Sep 2026.

Hope Gas

Regulated West Virginia natural gas distribution utility. Its filed tariff (PSC of WV No. 4, "Index of Communities Served," Sheet Nos. 1 through 4, effective February 25, 2026) lists communities in 28 counties: Barbour, Boone, Braxton, Cabell, Calhoun, Clay, Doddridge, Fayette, Gilmer, Harrison, Jackson, Kanawha, Lewis, Lincoln, Logan, Marion, Marshall, Mason, Mercer, Mingo, Monongalia, Nicholas, Pleasants, Preston, Putnam, Raleigh, Randolph and Ritchie, and adds that "service is also available to rural customers located adjacent to the existing field lines of the Company." A customer count is not recorded: no figure for it could be pulled from a page this session actually fetched.

10-day notice

Rule 4.8.1.e.2 defines a Seasonal Time Period of November 1 through March 31

That is added notice, not a moratorium: Rule 4.8.1.e states it "does not prohibit disconnection." Rule 4.8.3 sets a $5.00 reconnection charge "unless otherwise provided in an effective tariff on file with the Commission," so the utility's own filed tariff below controls, not the $5.00

Statewide rule: WV PSC Rule 150 CSR 4 (Rules for the Government of Gas Utilities and Gas Pipeline Safety), current version effective 7/11/2018 and confirmed Active on the WV Secretary of State's rule-version list (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/rule.aspx?rule=150-04)

Rule 4.8.2.b.1: written notice must comply with P.S.C

W.Va. Form No

14-G and "shall be sent first class mail, address correction requested, postmarked at least ten (10) days prior to the scheduled termination"

it may not be mailed before the bill is delinquent

The rule says "ten (10) days," not "business days," so the 10 runs as calendar days from the postmark

This is the gas chapter, read separately from the electric chapter (150 CSR 3) -- the two happen to carry the same 10-day figure, but it was checked in the gas text, not copied across

Rule 4.8.2.b.2.B then requires three personal-contact attempts on three separate business days instead of two, at least one an on-site visit, with the last at least 48 hours before termination

Hope Gas's own filed tariff supersedes the $5.00 default and confirms it defers to the statewide notice rule

PSC of WV No. 4, Rules and Regulations for Distribution and Sale of Natural Gas, Sheet No. 8, paragraph 1, states its terms "are supplementary to the Rules and Regulations for the Government of Gas Utilities and Gas Pipeline Safety" of the WV PSC, and paragraph 7 says that whenever gas is turned off under Commission Rule 4.7 or 4.8 "the Company may make a charge for reconnection of service as set forth in paragraph 12." Paragraph 12 sets the $30.00 recorded in the fee field

These sheets are unusually current: issued February 20, 2026, effective February 25, 2026, by Order of the Public Service Commission of West Virginia in Case No

25-0417-G-42T dated February 10, 2026, with the paragraph 12 change flagged (C)

Tariff fetched at https://hopegas.com/document/rules-and-regulations-for-distribution-and-sale-of-natural-gas, linked from hopegas.com/my-account-information/rates-tariffs

The Commission's own tariff library could not be used as a second check: psc.wv.gov and psc.state.wv.us both refuse connections from this environment (502 on CONNECT and 403 respectively on every path tried), so the tariff was read from the copy the utility itself publishes

Reconnection fee:$30.00 where a premise visit is required to reconnect service. Per PSC of WV No. 4, Rules and Regulations for Distribution and Sale of Natural Gas, paragraph 12, Sheet No. 9. Paragraph 21 adds that a customer shut off and then put on a payment plan has a $30.00 reconnect charge, plus a security deposit, folded into the plan. A customer who reapplies within eight months also owes a separate gas-cost-recovery charge of $8.28 per month elapsed (paragraph 20).

Assistance Programs

Special Reduced Rate Residential Service (Rate Schedule SRRRS, PSC of WV No. 4, Sheet No. 23): service under Rate Schedule RS less a 20% credit each month for the December, January, February, March and April billing months, for customers showing proof of SSI, AFDC/TANF, AFDC-U, or food stamps if 60 or older. Application is made at a Hope Gas office on a form adopted by the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Services under W. Va. Code 24-2A-1(b).

"W. Va. Code R. 150-4-4 (WV PSC Rules for the Government of Gas Utilities and Gas Pipeline Safety, Customer Relations), version effective 7/11/2018, confirmed Active on the WV Secretary of State's rule-version list (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/rule.aspx?rule=150-04)." law.cornell.edu. Retrieved 22 Sep 2026.

Water Shutoff Rules

Regulatory notice requiredNot regulated / varies

Major Utilities

West Virginia American Water

Investor-owned water utility under PSC jurisdiction, headquartered in Charleston. Its filed tariff (P.S.C. W.Va. No. 2, "Index of Cities, Towns, Villages, and Districts Served," Sheets S-1 through S-5) states water service "is available in all localities where the Company has existing water mains, including portions of the following counties in West Virginia," and the county headings that came through legibly include Boone, Braxton, Cabell, Fayette, Jackson, Jefferson, Kanawha, Lewis, Mason, Mercer, Putnam, Raleigh, Summers and Wayne. Those sheets are scanned images with imperfect text, so the list is read as "including" rather than exhaustive. A statewide customer count is not recorded: no figure for it could be pulled from a page this session actually fetched.

10-day notice

Statewide rule: WV PSC Rule 150 CSR 7 (Rules for the Government of Water Utilities), current version effective 3/10/2025, confirmed Active on the WV Secretary of State's rule-version list (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/rule.aspx?rule=150-07), superseding the 3/25/2023, 9/14/2021 and 5/8/2011 versions, all now marked Historical

Rule 6.8.1.a: the utility "may not discontinue service sooner than ten (10) days following the date that a utility has mailed to a customer written notice of scheduled termination of service, in compliance with Water Form No. 1"

the notice is void if service is not cut within thirty (30) days of the date on it

Plain "ten (10) days," not business days, running from the mailing date

Rule 6.8.1.c requires two personal-contact attempts on two separate business days at least 24 hours before the scheduled termination

Rule 6.8.1.d bars disconnection on a Saturday, Sunday, state or federal holiday, a day the business office is not open to accept payment, or the day before any of those

Rule 6.8.1.e confines disconnections to 8 a.m.-4 p.m

Unlike the electric and gas chapters, the water rule sets NO statewide dollar default: Rule 6.8.3.a says that when water is turned off for non-payment "the utility may make a charge as set forth in its tariff for reestablishment of service," so the tariff figure below is the only source for the fee. (Rule 6.8.3.b is a different situation -- a customer-requested disconnection followed by a request to restore within eight months.) Because the 2025 version is newer than most secondary copies, the text was read twice: at Cornell LII and in the Secretary of State's own scanned copy of the filed 2025 rule (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/readfile.aspx?DocId=57678&Format=PDF)

Both read "ten (10) days" at 6.8.1.a and both tie reconnection to the tariff at 6.8.3.a

West Virginia American Water's own filed tariff supplies the fee the rule leaves to the tariff

P.S.C

W.Va. No. 2, Terms and Conditions Section 1.1, states the company's terms "supplement and clarify the Rules for the Government of Water Utilities, 150 C.S.R

7-1, et seq." -- so the 10-day Water Form No. 1 notice above is the operative deadline

Its "Reconnecting Service" provision says that when service is discontinued for nonpayment "the reconnection charge listed in Sheet No. RS6 will be applied," and adds that the charge "may be added to a past due balance and included in the outstanding balance under a deferred payment agreement." Sheet RS-6, Section 6.3, sets that charge at $20 for all meter sizes

the sheet was issued September 18, 2024 by Final Order of the PSC in Case No

24-0434-WS-PC dated August 30, 2024, effective August 30, 2024

Note for anyone re-checking: Sheet RS-6 is an image-only page inside the tariff PDF with no text layer, so the $20 was read by rendering and OCRing that page rather than by text extraction, and an automated text search of the PDF will not find it

Tariff fetched at https://amwater.com/wvaw/resources/PDF/Customer-Service-Billing/westvirginia-amwater-water-service-tariff.pdf, the file currently linked from amwater.com/wvaw/customer-service-billing/your-water-and-wastewater-rates

it is current, carrying a DSIC sheet effective March 1, 2026

The Commission's own tariff library could not be used as a second check: psc.wv.gov and psc.state.wv.us both refuse connections from this environment (502 on CONNECT and 403 respectively on every path tried), so the tariff was read from the copy the utility itself publishes

Municipal water systems and public service districts in West Virginia are separately treated under 150 CSR 7 and are not covered by this row

Reconnection fee:$20, all meter sizes. Per P.S.C. W.Va. No. 2, Rates and Charges Section 6.3, Third Revision of Original Sheet No. RS-6. If service was disconnected somewhere other than the meter because of the customer's own actions, the customer may instead owe the actual cost of reconnecting.

Assistance Programs

Special Reduced Rate Residential Service (SRRRS), Terms and Conditions Section 13.1, under W. Va. Code 24-2A-5: available to residential customers who show proof of receiving SSI, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), TANF-Unemployed Parent, or SNAP if 60 or older, giving a 20% credit before local taxes. Application goes to the company's Charleston office on a form adopted by the state human services department.

"W. Va. Code R. 150-7-6 (WV PSC Rules for the Government of Water Utilities, Customer Relations), version effective 3/10/2025, confirmed Active on the WV Secretary of State's rule-version list (apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/rule.aspx?rule=150-07)." law.cornell.edu. Retrieved 22 Sep 2026.

Medical & Vulnerable Household Exemptions

Doctor's note stating disconnection would be especially dangerous to a household member's health postpones service cutoff. Life support equipment users receive additional protection.

Low-Income Protections

LIHEAP / Energy Assistance program available through WV DHHR. Appalachian Power, Dominion Hope (gas), and Mountaineer Gas offer low-income assistance. WV PSC requires utilities to provide information about assistance programs in disconnect notices.

Your State Regulator

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