SAIPAN — Senator Corina L. Magofna said she fully supports a consumer billing protection bill authored by Representative Vincent S. Aldan and tabled it in committee only to strengthen it, pushing back sharply against accusations that she repeatedly delayed the measure or did favors for utilities.
In a statement posted to social media Sunday, Magofna addressed House Bill 24-59, HD1, the Fair Billing Practices Act, after Aldan said in a live broadcast Friday that the Senate was sitting on the measure and accused her of repeatedly postponing action on it.
“I support the intent of this Bill 100%,” Magofna wrote. “YES, I did table it from our last committee meeting. Why? Because I strongly felt that the Bill was not ready for adoption in its current form.”
She said she wanted to offer amendments to add protections for consumers and ratepayers after weighing comments and testimony from stakeholders. “That is all! No hidden agenda! No games! No favors to CUC, CHCC, or whoever I was being accused of playing favoritism for,” she wrote. “Get your freaking facts and shit straight before running your mouth accusing me of your conspiracy theories!”
Magofna challenged Aldan to document his claim that she repeatedly postponed action, and said the lawmaker should have contacted her directly rather than airing the dispute publicly. “If you were a responsible congressman, which I assume your constituents expect you to be, you would have had the decency and professionalism to call or text me and ask why,” she wrote. “You have my number. Instead, you chose to blast me on social media, call me names, and give the public false information that I cancelled the meeting at the last minute because I’m playing games and just kicking the can down.”
She said Friday’s committee meeting was postponed for an administrative reason. A Legislative Bureau staff member had resigned, she said, causing her Open Government Act notice and agenda to be posted late and miss the required notice period, which forced the reschedule.
Magofna said the committee meeting is now set for Tuesday at 10 a.m. in the Senate Chamber, noting she would have scheduled it for Monday but for the austerity furlough. She encouraged residents to attend and provide testimony.
The fact sheet she released lists five amendments she intends to introduce. They would reduce the Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation’s back-billing exemption from 24 months to 12 and require annual legislative review, require written proof of what caused any billing delay, limit consumers’ exposure to legal fees to disputes proven frivolous or filed in bad faith, require annual public reports on back billing, and create extended hardship payment plans for seniors, low-income households, disaster victims and families facing financial hardship.
As written, the bill limits most back bills to four months, requires companies to explain and document back bills, gives consumers at least 30 days notice before payment is due, allows payment plans, bars utility shutoffs while a billing dispute is pending, and prohibits interest and penalties on most back-billed amounts.
Magofna chairs the Senate Committee on Resources, Economic Development and Workforce and serves as Senate Vice President.
