Attack of the red pen...

Yet another package gets hit with a fix...


Lead in:

TONIGHT -- WE'RE DIGGING DEEPER INTO A DEVELOPING STORY WE FIRST BROUGHT YOU LAST NIGHT...

ABOUT REDDING ELECTRIC UTILITY...

AND THE THOUSANDS OF DISCONNECTION NOTICES BEING SENT OUT TO CUSTOMERS.

AS WE FIRST TOLD YOU LAST NIGHT -- THE COMPANY SPOKESMAN SAYS R-E-U RUNS LIKE A BUSINESS... AND CAN'T TAKE THE BLAME FOR PEOPLE NOT PAYING THEIR BILLS.

WE DID SOME RESEARCH AND FOUND OUT IN 2006 -- R-E-U SENT OUT ABOUT 76-THOUSAND DELINQUENT NOTICES.

JUST TWO YEARS LATER -- IN 2008 ... THAT NUMBER INCREASED 26 PERCENT... TO 95 THOUSAND.

WE DID THE MATH... AND IF EACH OF THOSE 95-THOUSAND CUSTOMERS PAID JUST THE MINIMUM 16-DOLLAR LATE FEE.

THAT'S MORE THAN ONE AND A HALF MILLION DOLLARS!

AS SOON AS WE AIRED THE STORY ... VIEWERS STARTED FLOODING OUR NEWSROOM WITH CALLS AND E-MAILS ABOUT *THEIR EXPERIENCES WITH R-E-U.

JANE DOE CONTINUES OUR COVERAGE WITH A STORY ABOUT HOW THESE FEES-- ARE HITTING SOME LOCAL FAMILIES VERY HARD.



I was just sitting there ... And it was lights out.

APRIL AND ROBERT WARE ... ARE SICK AND TIRED OF BEING AT THE LOSING END OF THIS RED SLIP.

THE FIRST TIME IT HAPPENED??

I can't even explain how I felt ... I was very emotional ... I called my husband crying.

3 DISCONNECT NOTICES FROM R-E-U ... OVER THE PAST 3 YEARS.

2 TIMES THE PLUG WAS PULLED.

PAYING A 350 DOLLAR BILL IS ROUGH THESE DAYS!

ROBERT WAS LAID OFF FROM HIS JOB AT SIERRA PACIFIC -- AND THEIR DAUGHTER HAS ONGOING MEDICAL PROBLEMS.

Everybody has problems they are all different ... If people are willing to try why turn them away ... A little something has to change.

JUST THIS WEEK -- R-E-U TOLD ME THEY'LL WORK WITH THEIR CUSTOMERS ... *IF THEY HAVE GOOD PAYMENT HISTORY.

BUT THE WARE FAMILY SAYS THAT'S AN EMPTY PROMISE.

THEY SAY THE VERY FIRST TIME THEY COULDN'T PAY ... THEY ASKED R-E-U TO SPLIT UP THE PAYMENTS ... AND WERE TOLD NO.

A WEEK LATER IT WAS LIGHTS OUT!

the first disconnect was over a thousand dollars ... Like i said we had no deposit, no history ... but we had to pay up front ... Or no electricity at all.

THE SECOND TIME ... APRIL SAYS SHE WAS 5 MINUTES LATE PAYING THE BILL ON-LINE.

SHE LEFT A NOTE ON THE METER ... IT READ PAID IN FULL!

DIDN'T WORK!

I came around the corner and scared him ... He said he would call in ... But still had to disconnect ... It wasn't made on time.

IT'S A SNOW BALL AFFECT.

RECONNECTION FEES ... BIG DOLLAR DEPOSITS ... ALL MAKING IT NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE TO GET THE LIGHT BURNING AGAIN!

You are a bill ... A name an address ... The circumstance you try to explain ...Sorry!

TAG:

WE CALLED R-E-U DIRECTOR PAUL HOOSER TODAY TO FOLLOW UP ON THE WARE'S CLAIMS THAT THE CITY WOULDN'T WORK WITH THEM-- EVEN THE VERY FIRST TIME THEY WERE LATE.

HOOSER SAYS ...HE WILL LOOK INTO IT ... WITH THE WARE'S PERMISSION OF COURSE.

WE CALLED THE WARE FAMILY ... THEY SAY NO PROBLEM!

WE'LL KEEP FOLLOWING THIS STORY -- AND LET YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENS.

1. shot sheet -

Couple at table, couple walking outside ... Reu late notices, family pictures, a candle, their son, the house, their meter, the couple side by side. Reu file video

2. nats: couple laughing ... Talking to their son ... Writing a check nats.

3 transcription of sound bites - i threw them away ... But i did have a run through of

april describing when the man came ... She ran out in her bath robe!

I also have one great soundbite of the husband telling me he didn't give the wife enough credit ... He makes the money and she has to deal with the reu drama!

4. I didn't use the stand-up ... It was a tad blown out! I was standing by a meter with the red slip in hand ... And said: "when April got this red slip panic set in ... but its not about the amount on this paper ... Its about what happened after.



Okay, this is one of those "man versus the big bad utility company stories" and you pretty much offered one side of the story when there were actually four. You took care of the point of view of the customer. Nothing about the utility company's side until the tag, which you explained away with the old "we contacted them by phone." I would like to at least see a shot of you walking in the door of the utility, even if you come away with nothing. The viewer needs to know you gave it the old college try.

Meanwhile, the two biggies you missed are contacting the state's public service commission and seeking out agencies who can help people pay their utility bills. The PSC regulates utilities, and this company may have been in violation... but we don't know. Hold some politician's feet to the fire on this. And you need to at least offer some sort of solution for those in need. "If you've been laid off and can't pay your utility bill, contact this agency. You might qualify for assistance."

The writing was okay, though the lead in was way, way too long. As a viewer, I want you to get to the story. Since you didn't use the standup at the house, let's see you out there investigating the story. "We tried to talk to someone at the utility company..." or "If you can't pay your bill, you can come here... and maybe find some help."

No nat breaks. Okay, if the power is out you probably didn't have much, but you can try turning things on, walking up to the meter, and if you were real resourceful, find a meter reader and follow him.