Alamogordo residents meet with PNM to address high electric bills
PNM representatives met with Alamogordo residents to answer questions about unusually high electric bills, with one nonprofit discovering a $3,000 error caused by a typo.
ALAMOGORDO, N.M. —
PNM representatives met with nearly 140 Alamogordo residents at the Inkwell Innovation Center to address concerns over unusually high electric bills and provide assistance.
PNM said the event was focused on meeting customers face-to-face, answering questions about their bills, and connecting them with available resources.
“We’ve heard our customers saying that they have questions, voicing their frustrations. And it’s our obligation to meet them where they’re at,” PNM spokesperson Eric Chavez said.
Residents had the opportunity to sit down one-on-one with PNM staff to review their bills and seek solutions.
“We have opportunities for folks to come in, ask questions about their bill, have a representative look directly at their bill, and also provide assistance,” Chavez said.
For Tresa VanWinkle, who runs CAPPED, a local cancer nonprofit, the meeting brought clarity after her organization received a July electric bill of $3,636.38.
“We talked to a lady by the name of Cassandra. She looked at our bill, and in a short amount of time, she said there’s something terribly wrong here,” VanWinkle said.
After reviewing the bill, PNM identified the issue.
“There was a typo, and a $3,000 error in the bill came from a typo,” VanWinkle said.
The discovery brought immense relief to VanWinkle, who feared the nonprofit might have to close.
“I wanted to cry because we were at risk of losing our nonprofit,” she said.
For other customers, PNM is offering payment arrangements and assistance through programs like its Good Neighbor Fund. The company encouraged anyone with questions or concerns about their bills to reach out.
“If anybody has questions about their bill, they’re not sure what they’re looking at, they just want to find out more information. We encourage them to come and ask, and we will be there to help them,” Chavez said.
While VanWinkle is relieved to have resolved her issue, she emphasized the need for greater accountability from PNM.
“They need to be diligent, and when people keep telling them there’s a problem, they need to have a team look over those bills,” she said. “I’ve agonized over this for 20 days, thinking the nonprofit was gonna have to close. That should have never happened.”
PNM announced that the meter-reader positions that contributed to earlier disruptions have now been filled and said it is working to prevent similar issues in the future.
For those unable to attend the event, PNM has set up a dedicated phone number and email for affected customers with questions. Customers in the Alamogordo area can call 844-378-5792 or email pafollowup@pnm.com.
