CU reports good feedback on earlier shutoff notices

Customers of City Utilities of Springfield may have noticed changes in some of the company’s practices in recent months.

CU transitioned to a new vendor to mail its disconnect notices in October 2025, according to Jamie Presley, the utility’s manager of communications.

“This reduced the turnaround time from when the letter is generated and delivered from roughly eight days to three,” Presley said via email.

She added that CU also added an additional email to its disconnect process. After a disconnect notice is generated, an email is sent the following afternoon to customers with an email address on file for their account.

Finally, CU adjusted the timing of its disconnect calls, Presley said.

“Instead of going out at 7 p.m. the night before a potential 10 a.m. disconnection, the calls are now placed at 2 p.m.,” she said. “This earlier notice gives customers more time to make a payment or speak with a customer service representative about available options.”

Presley said the changes were implemented by the CU leadership team.

“As part of our ongoing commitment to customer service, we regularly evaluate our processes and look for opportunities to improve communication and provide a better experience for our customers,” she said.

She added that customer feedback has been positive.

“Many have expressed that they appreciate the earlier courtesy call, so they have a few more hours to make a decision and work to find a resolution,” she said. “The added email has also been well received, as it provides earlier notification than the letter.”

Presley said it took some time for CU to get its new processes implemented and to make the transition between vendors.

“Now that these updates are in place and largely automated, we are not seeing significant operational impacts,” she said. “Our customer service team has welcomed the changes, as they provide more opportunities to assist customers before disconnection occurs.”

PAC formation
Some of CU’s changes followed a burst of activism by Jacob Brower, owner of Archer’s Bow Media and Marketing LLC and a residential customer of CU.

After experiencing a near shutoff of his residential account and having a fractious experience with a representative while trying to resolve it, Brower founded the City Utilities Accountability Political Action Committee. He filed a statement of committee organization with the Missouri Ethics Commission on June 20, 2025. Filings with the MEC show no other names and no donations associated with the PAC.

Brower said the week he launched his company, he received a shutoff notice for his home electric service, and according to Brower, it was his first communication from the utility.

At the time, he said, his family was caring for his elderly mother-in-law, who was on hospice, and her life support equipment depended on electricity for power.

“I didn’t wake up that morning planning on taking on a multibillion-dollar conglomeration,” he said. “I was just a papa bear trying to protect my den.”

Compounding the problem was a conversation with a customer service representative, described by Brower as less than sympathetic.

“He basically had zero interest in helping me whatsoever,” Brower said.

While his interactions with CU’s frontline customer service staff were always great, Brower said, this online rep did not meet those standards.

“He was gleeful about it,” Brower said. “His exact quote was, ‘I love taking calls like this.’”

Brower said he tried pleading and reasoning with the rep, but nothing worked. He could not negotiate one more day, or even one more hour to keep the power on.

“I’m not easy to anger, but yeah, I was pretty angry,” he said.

Brower said he was able to access emergency funds and avert a shutoff at what he called the 11th hour, but he noted many in Springfield live in extreme poverty.

“A lot of people don’t have that option,” he said.

Brower described the experience as more than simple bureaucracy.

“It crosses the line from bureaucratic incompetence into Orwellian dystopia,” he said. “I couldn’t believe my ears.”

Brower began attending CU board meetings and addressing the board at one of them in June 2025, and by also communicating with administrators. He said he heard that shutoffs for nonpayment affect only 1% of Springfield households, though he was not sure of the accuracy of that figure.

“Depending on how you round it, that’s about 100 households,” he said.

Brower said it took his own experience with a potential shutoff for him to wake up to the problem.

“I’m a little ashamed that it took it coming to my house for me to become passionate about it,” he said. “I’m lucky in that I was raised right – raised to stick up for people who can’t stick up for themselves.”

A Facebook page for City Utilities Accountability PAC characterizes the utility’s changes as progress, and an April post details earlier mailings of shutoff notices, earlier shutoff robocalls and the practice of affixing notices to doors at some properties.

Brower calls those moves a step in the right direction, though he notes in the post on the PAC page, “I firmly believe that shutoff calls should be made two days before service is to be disconnected to give residents a full day to either avert disaster or prepare for it,” he said, noting he continues to urge CU to make that change.

Brower said in the post that he appreciated CU for working with him on the issue.

“While I understand the need for shutoffs, they should be an absolute last resort once all other reasonable options have been exhausted,” he said.

Appreciated
Presley said CU appreciated Brower’s engagement.

“City Utilities had already begun implementing improvements prior to receiving Mr. Brower’s concerns and his attendance at the Board of Public Utilities meeting,” she said.

She added that the board will continue to evaluate opportunities to better serve the community.

Asked if future changes are in the works for customer service, Presley said there are some.

“We are developing a few additional communication touchpoints, including an added email reminder for customers on paying arrangements,” she said. “Beyond that, we remain focused on continuously improving our processes to ensure an easy and high-quality experience for our customers.”