Peco pulls back on erroneous newsletter

After complaints from customers and at least one state senator, Peco is pulling the plug on a customer newsletter that provided inaccurate information on the state's voter-ID law.

The newsletter, stuffed into customer bills beginning Sept. 29, advised voters that they would have to provide a valid photo ID to vote Nov. 6.

The photo-ID requirement was suspended Oct. 2 by Commonwealth Court Judge Robert E. Simpson Jr. Under his ruling, voters will be asked for ID, but will be allowed to vote whether or not they have it.

Peco told The Inquirer on Tuesday that it planned to continue distribution of the newsletter through Oct. 28, the end of its billing cycle, in spite of the faulty information.

But the utility changed course Wednesday, announcing it would suspend further distribution beginning Thursday and would publish another newsletter, with accurate information on the status of voter ID, from Oct. 28 through Nov. 5.

"We're trying to minimize the impact as much as possible," said Peco spokesman Ben Armstrong.

One of the Peco customers complaining about the newsletter was State Sen. Daylin Leach (D., Montgomery).

"I know from calls to my district office that there are many people who are confused," Leach e-mailed Peco lobbyist Mark Haas. "Receiving this newsletter in the mail will further confuse people and, I fear, result in more people not showing up at the polls, for fear of not being able to vote or even getting in some sort of trouble."