News Digest

State PUCs

Natural Gas Competition. After reviewing a report prepared by its staff, the Iowa board rejected all plans filed by Iowa natural gas utilities to open the natural gas market to small-volume customers.

"[S]ome of the utilities' plans do not proceed quickly enough and others proceed too quickly by having the regulated utility exit the merchant function," the board said.

The board, while recognizing that some issues might require legislation to resolve, attempted to "move this process forward" by requiring each utility to propose tariff changes that remove barriers to competition in the small-volume sector. Comments addressing the procedural steps for designing the initial tariffs were due April 3.

Board member Susan J. Frye agreed with the rejection of the utilities' plans, but dissented on the commission's attempt at moving forward on the issue without the help of lawmakers. "[L]egislation is a better way to open the small-volume gas market to customer choice than the interim tariff modification approach adopted in this order," she said. .