The Illinois Supreme Court has overturned a ruling by state regulators denying recovery by natural gas local distribution companies (LDCs) of the carrying costs on the unamortized balance of their coal-tar cleanup costs. The Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) had ruled that the utilities could recover the costs of statutorily mandated coal-tar cleanup expenses from ratepayers over a five-year amortization period.
The Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) has proposed rules to implement dialing parity for providers of toll telephone services in the state. Under the rules, local exchange carriers (LECs) must offer customers two carrier presubscription choices, one for interMSA (market service area) calls and another for nonlocal intraMSA calls. The ICC rejected a proposal to delay the move to presubscription until LECs are permitted to compete with interexchange long distance carriers (IXCs).
The Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has terminated an ongoing rulemaking on stranded-cost recovery by electric utilities in the state. In closing the docket, the PUC cited proposed rules recently issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) as evidence of FERC jurisdiction in the matter.
The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) has reaffirmed earlier rulings establishing performance-based rate mechanisms for Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania, Inc., citing its authority to implement modified versions of a capacity-release sharing mechanism and an incentive mechanism for purchased gas costs.
(TRC) test has become the dominant method of comparing the costs and benefits of demand-side management (DSM) programs. Yet the TRC test fails to recognize the negative rate impacts from reduced kilowatt-hour consumption. DSM advocates argue that more extensive DSM programs will compensate for this flaw. If all customers have an opportunity to participate in a DSM program, they claim, customers' total bills will fall in spite of rising rates that pay for the DSM investments.
Regulation of the United Kingdom's 12 regional electricity distribution companies (RECs) has sought to promote efficiency through the use of price caps that are supposed to remain in place for five years without regulatory intervention. The benefits of cost reductions between reviews accrue to shareholders no matter how much earnings might rise. The idea was to provide more incentive than if earnings were subject to review whenever they exceed some specified level.
Productivity has increased enormously under this system.
Sithe/Independence Power Partners, L.P., an independent power producer (IPP), has filed a petition at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) alleging that Niagara Mohawk Power Corp. (NMP) has been overcharging for electric transmission. Sithe believes NMP has been calculating transmission losses on an incremental basis; FERC policy requires that transmission losses be calculated on an average basis.
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) administrative law judge Jerome Nelson has found the proposed merger between Central and South West Corp. (CSW) and the bankrupt El Paso Electric Co. (EPE) consistent with the public interest (Docket Nos. EC94-7-000 and ER94-898-000). However, Judge Nelson recommended that approval be subject to a FERC decision on a number of comparability issues. (The FERC had issued an earlier opinion imposing comparability as part of the merger deal, but excepting ERCOT members.
The issue of the day is what to do with the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA). Whether the act will be repealed or merely revised is open to debate, but the consensus is that changes are forthcoming.
Ever since the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued its February order finding that the California commission had violated PURPA by requiring Southern California Edison Co. and San Diego Gas and Electric Co.