Did Kentucky's COVID order against utility shutoffs stop a water company from disconnecting a meter someone turned on without permission?

Plain-English summary

During the COVID-19 emergency, Governor Beshear issued an executive order suspending utility disconnections. Louisville Water Company faced an odd situation: the account holder was the estate that owned a residence, and unidentified individuals had accessed the meter and turned the water on without the estate's authorization. The estate's legal representative wanted the water shut off. Louisville Water asked whether doing so would violate the Governor's order.

The Attorney General concluded it would not. Executive Order 2020-323 suspended "disconnections due to non-payment" by gas, water, wastewater, and electric utilities for the duration of the emergency. Reading the order's plain language, the office found the suspension reached only shutoffs for nonpayment. Here, Louisville Water would be disconnecting at a customer's request because service had been turned on without authorization, not because a bill went unpaid, so the order did not apply. The opinion expressly did not decide whether the Governor had the authority to suspend utility disconnections in the first place, and it limited its answer to the unauthorized-service scenario presented.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2020. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Background and statutory framework

On May 8, 2020, the Governor issued Executive Order 2020-323, which, citing the authority vested by KRS Chapter 39A, prohibited "disconnections due to non-payment" by entities providing natural gas, water, wastewater, or electric utility service in the Commonwealth, "including, but not limited to entities created under KRS chapters 96 and 279," for the duration of the state of emergency under Executive Order 2020-215. Reading that text, the Attorney General concluded the suspension applied only to nonpayment disconnections. Because Louisville Water would be acting at the request of its customer (the estate) to disconnect service that had been turned on without authorization, the disconnection was not for nonpayment and the order did not bar it. The opinion noted in a footnote that it did not reach whether the Governor had constitutional or statutory authority under KRS Chapter 39A to suspend utility disconnections, and limited its conclusion to the unauthorized-service situation.

Citations and references

Statutes and orders:

• KRS Chapter 39A; KRS Chapter 96; KRS Chapter 279; Executive Order 2020-323; Executive Order 2020-215

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.ky.gov/Opinions/Pages/default.aspx
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.ky.gov/Resources/Opinions/Opinions/OAG%2020-10.pdf

Original opinion text

The full opinion as issued by the Office of the Kentucky Attorney General:

Commonwealth of Kentucky
Office of the Attorney General
Daniel Cameron, Attorney General
Capitol Building, Suite 118, 700 Capital Avenue, Frankfort, Kentucky 40601

June 18, 2020

OAG 20-10

Subject: Whether Louisville Water Company would violate Governor Beshear's executive order suspending utility disconnections if it disconnected a water meter turned on without authorization.

Requested by: Beverly J. Soice, Paralegal, Louisville Water Company

Written by: Charles A. English, Assistant Attorney General, Office of Civil & Environmental Law

Syllabus: Louisville Water Company would not violate Governor Beshear's executive order suspending utility disconnections if it disconnects a water meter turned on without authorization because the Governor's order only applies to utility disconnections due to non-payment.

Opinion of the Attorney General

Louisville Water Company ("Louisville Water") requests this Office's opinion whether Louisville Water would violate Governor Andrew Beshear's executive order suspending utility disconnections if it disconnects water service at a residence turned on without authorization. For the reasons that follow, this Office finds that Louisville Water would not violate Governor Beshear's executive order suspending utility disconnections if it disconnects a water meter because the Governor's order only applies to utility disconnections due to non-payment.

On May 8, 2020, Governor Beshear issued Executive Order 2020-323. Among other things, the order provides:

6. Suspension of utility disconnections. Pursuant to the authority vested in me by KRS Chapter 39A, disconnections due to non-payment by all entities who provide natural gas, water, wastewater, or electric utility service within the Commonwealth, including, but not limited to entities created under KRS chapters 96 and 279, are prohibited for the duration of the State of Emergency under Executive Order 2020-215.[1]

(emphasis added.) Under the plain language of the order, the suspension of utility disconnections only applies to disconnections due to non-payment.

Here, the Louisville Water account holder is the estate that owns the residence at which water was turned on without authorization. The estate's legal representative is requesting that Louisville Water disconnect water service at the residence after unidentified individuals accessed the residence's water meter and turned it on without authorization by the estate. Therefore, if Louisville Water were to disconnect water service at this residence, it would be doing so at the request of one of its customers, and not because of non-payment.

For these reasons, this Office finds that Louisville Water would not violate Governor Beshear's executive order suspending utility disconnections if it disconnects a water meter turned on without authorization because the Governor's order only applies to utility disconnections due to non-payment.[2]

Daniel Cameron
ATTORNEY GENERAL

Charles A. English
Assistant Attorney General

[1] This opinion does not reach the question whether a Governor has the authority under the Constitution of Kentucky or KRS Chapter 39A to suspend utility disconnections because such a question is unnecessary to resolve under the facts presented.

[2] This opinion is limited to instances where utility service has been turned on without authorization. Disconnection for any other reason is not within the scope of this opinion.