State Rep. Dan Winslow Asks for Power Outage Rebate Bill

A local legislator has called for utility companies to take responsibility for extended outages.

Medfield State Rep. Daniel Winslow (R-Norfolk) has asked the House Rules Committee to take action on a power outage rebate bill. According to a release from Winslow's office, the bill would require rebates to customers who go without power for more than eight hours. The rebate would be for two days of their average bill for each day the customer is without power.

"We need to make sure the residents of Massachusetts are being taken care of and the utility companies are held accountable to fix the problem in a timely manner," Winslow said.

The bill, Winslow said, would incentivize preventative maintenance like tree removal. He said the efforts by utility companies have been inadequate.

Winslow has previously asked area residents in Framingham on Nov. 16.

U.S. Senator Scott Brown (R-MA) has criticized the response by utility companies as well, and speaking about the matter on Fox 25.