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PSC halves interruption penalty for Department of Juvenile Services after hardware failures
Summary
The Public Service Commission approved a 50% reduction to an interruption penalty tied to the Baltimore City Juvenile Justice Center after Department of Juvenile Services officials described aging boilers, temporary gas‑only equipment, contingency actions and repair timelines; staff had recommended a 25% reduction.
The Maryland Public Service Commission on July 8 approved a 50% reduction to an interruption penalty assessed against the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services (DJS) for failing to cease natural gas usage during utility interruption events earlier this year.
Staff recommended a limited reduction rather than a full waiver, citing long‑standing boiler problems at the Baltimore City Juvenile Justice Center, gaps in maintenance records, and the need to see more corrective testing. Staff presented a total penalty figure of $573,679.26 and recommended a 25% reduction based on the record.
Jeremy Ralph, appearing for DJS, accepted responsibility for the failure to interrupt and described the operational constraints at the secure detention facility, the use of temporary gas‑only boilers after equipment deterioration, and the corrective steps taken: repairs to boiler number 2, replacement of contaminated fuel, return of generators, chiller repairs and new project management controls. Thomas Numera, DJS maintenance director, told commissioners the chiller would be back in operation within two weeks and the boiler within about a month.
Staff said those remediation steps and more frequent concurrent testing would be needed to show future compliance, but the commission — after expressing satisfaction with DJS's corrective actions — voted to increase staff's recommended reduction to 50% and approved that motion unanimously among those present. The reduction was adopted by motion on the record; commissioners asked staff to follow up on maintenance documentation and periodic tests.
The commission's docket will reflect the granted reduction and notes that DJS must complete corrective work and provide documentation to staff to support future compliance.
