Advanced Meters allow for two-way communication on an Advanced Metering network. The meters collect usage data in increments. City Utilities will configure electric meters to collect usage in 30-minute increments, and gas and water meters to collect in hourly increments. The electric meters will also collect incremental data on voltage, current and temperature. The meters then transmit the data to City Utilities via the two-way network. Additionally, City Utilities personnel can remotely communicate with the meters to get current reads, check status, and disconnect and reconnect electric power.

No, Advanced Metering has been around for many years and is implemented at millions of homes and businesses across the United States. Advanced Metering is already implemented at many of the utilities that surround the City Utilities service territory.

Water and gas meters communicate with nearby electric meters. The electric meters can communicate with other nearby electric meters and ultimately with a collection point, which creates what is called a mesh network. The mesh network is very redundant, resilient, and self-healing. Water and gas meters will transmit data to the electric meters once per day. Electric meters transmit their data every four hours back to the database.

There will be no additional customer bill charges for this new technology. The project is being funded out of normal operating budgets. As City Utilities realizes financial benefits, those savings will also be used to fund this project.

Once all the meters at a residence or business are replaced with Advanced Metering functionality and communications have been tested and proven, then CU will cease to send a person to manually read your meters. Until ALL meter types (electric, gas, water) at your house are changed, we will still need to send a meter reader to your home.

The account holder must enroll in City Utilities’ AMI Opt-Out Program. Please refer to City Utilities’ opt-out policy for specific requirements.

• Opt-Out Enrollment
• Opt-Out Policy

AMI meters have become the standard metering option for City Utilities. Providing a non-standard option requires costs that go beyond the scope of City Utilities’ standard metering practices. A cost-based approach is the fairest way to implement this program.

These fees cover the costs to:

• Set up and administer the Opt-Out Program.
• Purchase a non-standard meter.
• Remove the existing AMI meter(s) if necessary.
• Install a non-standard meter(s) if necessary.
• Maintain the ability to provide manually read non-standard meter(s).

Yes, you may request removal from the Opt-Out Program at any time and at no cost to you. If this is done within 30 days of enrollment, all fees will be credited during the next billing period.

No. City Utilities has designed our Advanced Metering system such that our access stops at the meter. We have no intention of offering programs to control consumer devices in the home. If, in the future, it makes sense to offer such programs, they would be on a voluntary basis by each individual customer. Such programs can be financially beneficial to customers, but have to be signed up for by the customer. At no time would CU be able to control or monitor anything in the customer’s home or business without the customer’s permission, knowledge and installation of additional specialized equipment.